A Puzzling Proposal
by silverlineage
Summary: Detective Dupin and his assistant, Marjery, are set to go for a simple event. But, at the appearance of a letter about her past, he finds himself assisting her. In the end, he discovers that he has a dilemma. How does one deal with emotions of the past and of the heart? -Themed off of the Dark Tales: Edgar Allan Poe Seek Find Flash game series with the character Detective Dupin-
1. Chapter 1

It was mid-morning when she got the phone call. She had just showered and dressed before sitting down for her breakfast of tea, milk, eggs, toast and fruit. Walking over to the elegant ivory and gold decorated rotary phone, she picked up the handle and answered it.

"Hello? This is Marjery. Can I help you?" she asked in her crisp, yet dulcet tone.

"Marjery! Just the girl I needed to talk to," the familiar male voice said with a hint of enthusiasm. "Do you have time to come over later in the afternoon for tea?"

"Ah, Detective Dupin! Hello! Yes, my schedule is clear. Anything the matter?" she asked.

"Not at all. Just another case. I need to go over it with you," he chuckled.

"I'll eat my breakfast and get down to your house straightaway. Or was there another place?"

"No, no. My place is fine! I'll see you soon."

"You, too!" she laughed softly and hung up the phone. Another case? She hoped it would be exciting! She hadn't fully dressed yet, though. If she was to meet with Dupin, then she needed to look her best. Who knew what could happen around him? He was a renowned detective, and, if his services were required, then it was always a fact that he called on her. Eating her breakfast quickly now, she went to her somewhat sparse bedroom. The place she lived in was a rental flat that was already furnished. She had no need to spend on much. She could live comfortably in a home, but she had no need to move.

She went through the drawer full of her underthings to pull out a clean silk shift. A full dress with an overlaying petticoat of a soft grayish-blue color was next to put on with silk stockings for her slight heels. She was always very modest in her dress. She wasn't very busty, either, but she had enough. Going to her vanity, she placed on a slight amount of makeup in the form of eye shadow, blush and lip gloss. Brushing out her long, soft, dark brown hair, she adjusted the locks to frame her light green eyes as she pinned it all up into place. She liked to let others think that her hair was short.

When she studied her face, she pouted a little that she wasn't very pretty. Her nose seemed too small against her larger eyes. Even her mouth looked tiny when she pursed her lips together for the lip gloss. She wasn't very tall, either, at only five feet in height. However, it was her intellect that made her a desirable candidate to help with Dupin. That was more than she could have wanted.

Grabbing her purse to ensure she had her keys to lock up, she was soon out the door. It took a while to get to his house. He lived across town. Flagging down a horse-drawn cab, she gave the address to be taken there. When they got halfway there, the cab stopped.

"This is as far as I can go, Miss," the man said.

"What? Whatever for?" she frowned.

"There's construction down the way. It's a known fact. It's a risk to the horse," he shrugged. Sighing, she paid what fare she owed and got out of the cab. At least her destination wasn't too far off.

"I don't see any construction!" she grumbled to herself as she walked on the pavement. As she continued to walk, her feet began to hurt from the shoes she wore. If she knew she was going to be walking a distance, she would have brought better shoes. Scowling softly, she found a small outdoor café and sat down in one of the chairs for a small rest. She ordered a water with lemon when the waiter appeared. As she moved through her purse to see what change she had, she looked up at the man that now sat in a chair next to her.

"I had forgotten that they were doing construction on various parts of the main road," the pale man with shoulder-length brown hair sighed. "I figured you would have made it here before your shoes began to bother you. I wouldn't have worn walking boots, either, unless I had known."

"Dupin," she smiled softly. His straight brown, neatly combed, shoulder-length hair was actually starting to grey a touch, but his bright, blue eyes were clear and alert. Even his voice was strong and resilient and seemed to reflect a touch of known wisdom. His frame was tall, lean and evenly proportioned from all the detective work he did through his life.

He wore a light brown suit with a white undershirt. His top hat was neatly settled on his head, and his golden ball top cane was resting against his hip. Pulling up a menu, he browsed through it with thought. Then he looked at her and said, "You haven't eaten yet?"

"I ate a light breakfast. I never eat heavily," she shrugged.

"I'll pay for this meal," he smiled. "I don't want to get into what our call was about earlier. We shall wait until we get to my house."

"I wouldn't dream of speaking about such things publicly," she agreed. After a small brunch was ordered, they chatted about daily weather and odd things seen in the morning paper. With the tab paid, Dupin offered her his arm to escort her to his house.

"I never bothered to ask, but do you have any family?" he asked.

"I do. Just my sister now. My parents have passed on," she sighed.

"I am so sorry to hear that," he frowned.

"It's all right," she smiled. "It's been a few years since the carriage accident. Muddy roads and horses don't mix. I was living here at the time. My sister could have stopped them from going out."

"You resent her?"

"No. The weather was clear that night. From what she told me. I'm not sure what to think."

"I see. It does sound like an odd case."

"I'd rather just let it be."

"For now," he nodded. Marjery only looked away. He knew she was heavily troubled by it. Now he knew how deep of a private wound it was. Wisely changing the subject, he said, "You must forgive my memory. I think I locked the gate and couldn't find my key again."

"Again?" she looked at him skeptically. He gave her a sheepish grin in response. "Let me guess. You added that new puzzle lock, too, didn't you?"

"I did," he shrugged. "You know how I like my puzzles."

"All too well," she sighed. He laughed softly and walked her up to the massive gate that bordered around his house. On studying the intricate lock, she searched around the leaves and bricks to find the necessary pieces to put them back in place. "They always fall apart on you!"

"It keeps the mind sharp," he smirked and watched her carefully fit each piece back into place.

"Okay. I have the lock fixed up. Where is the key?" she asked.

"Ah…" he blinked. She groaned and almost tripped over a loose stone. He caught her deftly to help her stand. Sighing a bit, she was able to find a nearby crowbar to pull up the stone to get the key.

"You are a difficult man," she chuckled.

"I just like to make my home impossible to get into," he said with a smile.

"Even yourself?" she grinned and turned the lock.

"Touché, my dear," he muttered. She laughed at him, and he lead her into the Victorian-Gothic style, two-story mansion of a house.


	2. Chapter 2

He led her into the parlor and set her down in an elegant wire chair. Dark reds and pinks were the colors of choice here. As much as she would have suggested various shades of yellow, she had to admit that it added a sense of maleness to such a lovely room. He did have his tastes in colors.

He had no servants, much to her surprise. He preferred to get things for himself. He always said that servants were an air of laziness. The only time he would ever think of getting one was if there was no other choice. She could only laugh to herself at the mere thought that no servant would want to live here. Each door had the most confounding puzzle locks that she had ever seen!

He sat down and gestured to the opened envelope on the heavily clothed table. She nodded and picked up the typed letter. At the recognized authority insignias and wax seal, she was a touch surprised.

"An invitation to go to an Officer's Ball?" she smiled.

"Yes. Mainly for recreation, but do note that last bit on the end," he sighed.

"To bring a guest?" she rose a brow. "Am I to help you find one?"

"I'm already looking at her," he smiled. "I could trust no other to escort me to such a fine occasion. What do you think? Will you come with me?"

"Oh! I would be delighted! But, I fear I have no true gowns. It does state formal dress attire only. Um, I fear I would look rather drab," she cringed lightly.

"Nonsense! I chose you as my assistant for your wits. Not your looks," he said point-blank. "They'll have to go through me to point out any remarks at you. You have my word of honor."

"Of course, Dupin," she nodded. "Should I refer to you as Detective Dupin?"

"No," he said with a shake of his head. "Others can. Not you. We won't be working. This is purely a recreation. Nothing more."

"And if it becomes something more?" she asked.

"Hopefully it won't."

"It tends to. You know how things suddenly happen when you're around."

"I'm trying to be as logically positive as possible! Don't change the situation!" he scolded lightly at her mischievous smile. "I'm hoping that it will be a smooth event. Now, you said you had no gowns?"

"None. I never needed them. And I doubt this will suffice," she said and gestured to the modest dress she currently wore. "Dresses like those are also awfully expensive. How am I supposed to come up with the funds for something like that? And this invitation notates that the event is in two days."

"Well, you are crafty when you need to be," he thought. "Another reason I chose you."

"Thank you," she said softly with a soft blush. He found himself smiling back.

"Anyways, I'm sure that I can see about loaning you the funds."

"Oh, heaven's no! Don't even think about it!" she said adamantly. "I refuse to have any form of debts. I'll see what the seamstress can do for me. I'll get a price within my means. I'll work on it."

"And what is, exactly, within your means?"

"What I know I can afford without falling into debts on paying my rent," she said calmly.

"Of course," he nodded. He still made plans to contact whoever was to make her dress to make a secret half payment in advance. As her mentor and colleague, he liked to look out for her when he could. She had risked her life for him on so many occasions! And she even saved his life, too.

"It's early enough in the day. If I leave now, I can speak with the seamstress," she said and rose up to leave. He gestured for her to sit back down.

"You just got here. At least let me get you some tea?" he asked with a small smile.

"If you insist," she nodded. Now he rose up and went into the kitchen. As she sat there, she noticed the cuckoo clock on the wall. It appeared to be broken. Getting up to inspect it further, she saw that it wasn't wound up. Searching the table near her, she found the wind up key for it and used it on the clock. When the small bird came out, it had a small key strapped to it. Pondering at this, she took the key and set it in her pocket. It may come in useful later.

"Did you fix my clock?" he asked as he set down the tea tray.

"I did. I also found a key strapped to the bird," she chuckled.

"You did?! Interesting. I never recalled that before," he frowned. She showed him the small silver key. On thinking, he blinked in recognition. "Now I remember. Yes, you can hold on to that. Don't lose it, though. It's to something important. I just can't quite remember what's important."

"Really?" she grinned.

"It will come to me in time!" he said quickly. She giggled softly and sipped the tea he offered her. After an hour of chatting, he escorted her out the door to let her get her possible gown underway. Then he went to his phone to call up the local seamstress to arrange for the secret partial payment.

While he did that, she was able to spend thirty minutes getting to the seamstress. She was lucky enough to flag down another horse-drawn cab to take her there. When she walked in, the seamstress recognized her from the description that Dupin gave her. She was able to show the usual enthusiasm needed for new guests. He had disclosed to her that Marjery was not to be given any ideas that she knew of any contact. He wanted a decent figure sum, and to contact him the moment a dress was decided on.

"I'm honestly not sure what to expect at an Officer's Ball," Marjery admitted.

"I have just the thing," the middle-aged woman smiled. She pulled out a catalogue of various designs and pointed to one of a soft cream-colored dress with straps and a plunging neckline. When the price was given, Marjery was surprised. It seemed to be much cheaper than she thought it would be.

"I'll take it!" Marjery said with a smile. Little did she know that the true figure was only cut in half. She didn't pay it any mind, though. She was just happy that she would get a decent gown and still be able to pay off any future rent. She was told that it would be ready the very next day, and she had her measurements taken. With that done, she was able to catch another cab to take her back to her home.

When she walked into the main lobby, she was called over by the receptionist.

"You have a letter. Please go to your mailbox to retrieve it," the man said.

"Thank you," she smiled. She walked over to the mailbox and sighed that all of the mail was always jumbled up. She was able to sort the mail carefully to put everything back into their respective boxes and found her letter at the bottom of the pile. Getting back into her apartment, she locked the door behind her and sat down to open it. On reading it, her eyes widened with disbelief. She set the letter on the table with a shaky hand and pressed a fist to her chest. She didn't know what to do. Then she took a deep breath and rushed to the phone. There was only one person she could call for help.

"Detective Dupin speaking," he said when he answered on the fourth ring.

"Dupin, it's Marjery! I…need your advice…" she said in a trembling voice.

"My dear! Calm down. What's wrong?" he asked.

"Well…" she said with a deep breath. "My sister sent me a letter. She is…requesting for me to go back to the village of my birth. To…help her with an incident. I…honestly don't know…"

"What is the incident?" he asked.

"I can't speak of it," she whimpered softly. "It's just…"

"I'll be there shortly!" he said and abruptly hung up. She hung up right after and hugged herself. She wasn't sure what to make of it. For a hectic forty-five minutes she waited and fretted. When the knock finally came to her door, she opened it and let the detective in.

"Thank you for being here," she said softly.

"It's fine. Now, what's the matter? I got here as quickly as I could," he said. At the gesture to her opened letter on the table, he walked over and read it calmly. "So, someone vandalized the graves of your parents? And she reports that the bodies are missing?"

"That's what she tells me," she nodded.

"As you are a dear friend of mine, we will take this case. How soon can you leave?" he asked.

"But…the Officer's Ball…" she frowned.

"If we miss it, then we miss it. This is too important. It's a desecration of the resting place of your parents. We can't wait. Hmm. This letter was dated three days ago. Now…that's strange. Why does the date appear to be scratched out? A careful way, yet…that is extremely strange. And yet, if I study the ink of the actual letter, it is far too dried for just three days. I think she wrote this and waited to send it. The writing on the envelope looks fairly new, but this letter? No. It's clearly a different ink. The same as this new date, now that I study it. The body of the letter is completely different."

"What?" she blinked.

"Either she was hesitant, or she wrote it and forgot to send it. Even the edges of the page look a touch crumpled. As though it was put in a pile. That's…odd. Where is your place of birth located?" he asked gently. "It will give us an idea of travel time."

"Oh. It is about half a day's travel south. I'm from the village of Luxxon. A fairly simple town, really. It's been a few years since I've last been there," she said quietly. "At least four years. Since I've known you, actually."

"I'm going to ask you a very simple question. Why did you leave there to be here?"

"Well," she frowned and sat in a chair. "For the short story, my parents wanted to engage me to a farmer's son. I wasn't ready for marriage. The man they chose for me wasn't much to my liking, either. I think it was just to get me out of the house to avoid further payments for another grown child. My sister was too much for any man to be with. She had much higher standards than me, being my younger sister, too. My parents also liked her more than I. I call it favoritism."

"Definitely favoritism. Has she married?"

"Not that I know of. When I said I was leaving home, I was cut off. This is the first time I have heard from her since then. I don't know how she figured out where I lived."

"Very interesting," he mused. "But, how did you know of your parents' death?"

"She was able to contact me before I moved into this place. I had foolishly given over my details of where I was living to her. I thought, at the time, that I could trust her with the knowledge. As a sick joke, she would have men call on me constantly. She thought she would martyr the idea of having me married off as my parents wanted. After several months of the torment, I finally put my foot down and moved to this location. I've been happier here, too. As for my parents, they had passed on a month after I left. I had received her letter on it. Ah, here. I still have it."

She rummaged through the old mail and pulled out the yellowed parchment. He took it carefully and studied it fully. His eyes narrowed with thought.

"When did you receive this letter?"

"It was two months after I left. I had given her the information of my prior address the moment I settled in. That was just a few days after coming here. It took about two days for the letter to be sent, to my knowledge. The postal service agreed to inform me of the distance it took to send it. This letter was what I had received as her first letter back to me."

"So, instead of contacting you right away, she waited a month out after your parents died? And she didn't bother to write you back to inform you that she had received your information, too?"

"I…guess so…" she blinked at this insight.

"This letter states that they had just perished. But, look at the date of the letter. She put that they died a month ago, but that 'the funeral was lovely a month later'. Her words are very contradicting. I also recall you telling me about how they perished. That the night was clear, but the roads were muddy enough for horses to slip off of a track. It even states it here in the letter, but that the horses were fine. She further explains that it was the carriage that toppled, and I find that highly unlikely. There are a lot of things that aren't adding up. Besides, who would wait a month to bury a corpse in this day and age unless it was held for evidence? None of this makes any sense to me at all."

"I was just so distraught on learning that they died…"

"She tried to pin this fault on you. Maybe in a way to get you to move back?"

"Well…I didn't even see it that way before!"

"My dear, I'm going to give you an evaluation. Right now," he said. "I think your parents are still alive. I think your sister is playing you for a fool."

"What?!" she gaped.

"And, like the fool that she is, we are going to work with her cards. Half a day's travel? Good. We leave within the hour. Pack up as though you are moving back. No such thing, of course, but that will be a part of our cards. I already have the deck picked out. And you are my ace," he grinned.

"I still don't know how she figured out where I lived."

"My dear, if there is one thing that I learned, anyone can hire a man to scope out a town. You live in an apartment. Your name appears on the mail here. It can be fairly easy for anyone to simply come in, look at a list of names on a building roster and make an assessment of a mailing address. And it could be why the mail is always tampered with when you check it. You know how you always complain to me how it's in a jumbled pile every now and then? As though it was simply tossed on the ground?"

Her jaw dropped with complete shock. At this, he simply rose up elegantly with his cane to walk over to her. He closed her jaw gently with a white gloved hand. She looked completely distraught at the idea that she was being played by her own blood relation. She swallowed and said, "I am being baited?"

"I believe you were being baited since you left the village of your birth. Now we get to go back and find out exactly why," he smiled. "I'll meet you back here in an hour. Better make it two. I'll have to pack, as well. We'll talk more on the ride there."


	3. Chapter 3

Within three hours, they found themselves in a carriage for Luxxon. The seamstress was contacted to make the dress, but to hold onto it for when they got back just in case they made it in time for the ball. Dupin had also contacted the man in charge of the event to inform him of the emergency he had. His invitation would be held for him and his chosen guest in case they got back. With those two options secured, he was eager to find out more about this new puzzling case.

Marjery had brought out an old black and white family portrait for him to study. Her sister looked nothing like her at all. She looked almost exactly like a beautiful brunette princess from a fairytale. While her sister's eyes held her father's light blue, and her mother's blond-brown hair was done up neatly in a bun, Marjery got her eyes from her mother and her hair from her father. He was studying the two letters, too. He noticed that both papers appeared to have the same aging on the edges. The ink appeared to be the same color. When he told her of this, she was just in complete shock. He also noticed that neither letter was dated properly.

"What do you think this means?" she asked.

"I think she had everything pre-written out and planned. She sent you the first one as bait. Then, when you didn't fall for it to come back, she sent out the men to harass you and make you feel uncomfortable. To make you want to come home. I also believe that this newer letter was returned back to her with the reply that you didn't live at that residence any further. Yes. If I hold it up to the sunlight, I can see where the letter was folded a second time. See? Another crease. I don't think that she intended for you to move and drop all contact with her. I'm fairly sure that she tried to track you down when she could afford it. If it took her a few years, then I'm sure of one or two things," he said calmly.

"What would that be?"

"The first option is that your parents truly did pass on and left her a sum of money. The second is that she married a wealthy man and convinced him to let her find you. Of course, there is a third that she got a job and saved up."

"No. She wouldn't get a job. I'm fairly sure of the marriage bit, though. I wouldn't be surprised about that. And…if my parents did pass on…I'm doubting that, too, now that I think about it. I am a bit surprised at myself, though."

"For what?"

"For not realizing what she was trying to do."

"Marjery," he said gently. "It dealt over matters of the heart. Instead of saying that she missed you, she tried to get you to go back in all the wrong ways. Or, maybe she just got tired of not having another there to take the blames for what wrongs she's done. It could be any number of things. We'll find out when we get to the source of the issue. Don't worry."

She could only nod, and she paused at the feel of his hand gently squeezing her shoulder. She blinked back a tear, and winced. "Sorry."

"No need to be," he said softly. "If you need to shed any tears, do it now. You'll be stronger when we get there. And don't worry. I may be the mentor, but, in this case, you can be the one to show me around the town. You'll know it better than I."

"It may have changed…"

"Then we'll see the changes for ourselves. I am an excellent judge of character. We will find out what your sister had planned for you. I doubt she'll be expecting you to bring company."

"Least of all a detective?" she asked in a weak voice.

"Exactly," he smiled. She trembled again as the tears finally broke free. He took out his large, white handkerchief for her to use, and she thanked him when she was done. "Feel better?"

"I do," she nodded.

"Good. Now, tell me what you can of the village you used to reside in. Also, _before_ we meet your sister, I want to look at the cemetery first. If your parents aren't truly there, we will know her for the liar she was and is," he said sternly. "We can get our evidence against her that way."

"Of course," she nodded.

"And what are the names of your parents?"

"Francine and Marco Delury," she said.

"Thank you, Marjery. And, from what I can make out on the signature, your sister's name is Katrina?" he asked. At her nod, he continued. "Please tell me what you can about the village."

She took a deep breath and began to tell him what she knew. He listened intently to her words for the rest of the carriage ride there. When they got there, he had the driver stop just outside of town.

"Dupin?" she frowned.

"I don't want to draw attention to ourselves right away," he explained and leaned out the window to get the coachman's attention. "Hello! Can you take us to the cemetery, please? She would like to pay her respects before going into town."

"Of course, Sir," the man nodded. A quick detour was done to take them to the gravesite. They were carefully let out, and Dupin gave the man a coin to remain where he was.

"The letters don't state where they were buried," Dupin frowned. "We'll have to look."

"I can already tell you that they aren't here," she whispered.

"How so?"

"My…family line…always had a plot here. My parents aren't in it. I can see it from here."

"Show me, please," he nodded. She led him to the back of the small cemetery. He noticed the small area that new members were to be buried. Seeing that the ground was untouched, he sighed.

"All these years…she lied to me…" she shivered with anger. "For four years, I grieved for _nothing_! How could she?!"

"It's time to find out why," he nodded. She did find a small patch of flowers to place over the graves of her ancestors. They deserved that much respect. He even gave a bow of respect to the graves, too. He had seen quite a few things in his recent missions. Respecting the dead did have beneficial rewards later on. He even sensed appreciation given back to him in response. The dead were on their side in this matter. There was something else that he sensed that suggested they wanted something more. The feeling was fleeting, though. Shrugging it off, he escorted her out of the cemetery.

They got back to the carriage and were taken into the town. When they reached the main square, Marjery was amazed at some of the newer buildings here. Many of the old ones were still in place, but the town had been doing some growing while she was gone. It seemed to have a homey, rustic feel about it. Something felt off to Dupin, though. As though certain parts of the town were too old to fit with the current standards that he knew of. The newer buildings showed that the village was trying to adapt with the times, but, even that attempt, was out-dated. Why was that?

When Marjery hopped out of the carriage to help with the luggage, she was instantly recognized.

"Marjery? Marjery Delury? Is that really you?" a young man said as he walked over with a slight limp in his gait. She looked over at her name being called out.

"Yes. I am she," she nodded.

"I'm glad I ran into you! A bit surprised, but, well…yeah. I was only here to get some supplies for the farm. Um, do you remember me?" the man asked. "Anything at all? Hopefully?"

"I am afraid my memories are a bit muddled right now," she admitted.

"Oh. I was the one that your parents wanted you to marry," he said softly. She blinked at him and studied him. He did look a touch familiar. He was handsome enough now with a strong jaw, cleft chin and dark hair, but there was a lankiness in his build that seemed off to her. His eyes were a strong brown, too, which was fine, but she simply wasn't ready for marriage at all. When she showed that she did remember him, if slightly, he smiled and said "It's me, Stanley."

"Oh!" she blinked. "It's nice to see you again, Stanley. Unfortunately, I'm not staying for long. I'm just here to check on some family. Then I'm leaving again. I live in the main town now. It's a half day's travel from here."

"I see…" he frowned.

"Marjery! Did you get our things yet?" Dupin asked when he rounded around the carriage. Now Stanley saw Dupin and narrowed his eyes. For some odd reason, the detective sensed intense jealousy. It made him feel awkward for an odd reason. He resorted to the innocent bluff. "What? Do I have dirt on me? I don't think I do. I did lean out the window a few times, but the sill was clean."

"Stanley, this is Detective Dupin. My mentor. I am his assistant with his cases. I asked him to join me as a personal favor. I always joined him on his cases, and he agreed to assist with mine," she said calmly. Once she said the famous detective's name and the valid reason, Stanley's eyes widened.

"What's this about?" Dupin frowned.

"Stanley was the one I told you about on the ride here," she smiled softly. "He was the one I was to be betrothed to. I believe he thought that you and I were a couple."

"What?!" Dupin gaped with disbelief. "Well, I can gather why you thought that. No. That's not the case. We are here on important family business for her. Then we are departing for other engagements. I'm a very busy man. If it wasn't for her assistance in my cases, I'd be in a lot of trouble."

"Like trying to get into your own house?" she muttered to him under her breath.

"Quiet," he smirked back at her. Then he regarded Stanley. "But, that's why we are here."

"But…nothing's wrong here," Stanley said a bit cautiously.

"I got a letter from my sister that my parents were killed in an accident," Marjery frowned.

"No. They're just fine," he said. Now Dupin pursed his lips at what he assumed. "In fact, I just saw them heading back to your old estate."

"Then it appears that I'll need words with my sister," Marjery sighed.

"Um, she got married this past year. To the Mayor's son," Stanley said. Now Marjery looked at him with surprise. "We asked why you weren't invited. She told us that you were dead. It's…really why I was surprised to see you here. The whole town was told you got killed."

"So, she's been spreading lies wherever she went," Dupin said thoughtfully. "It's time to prove these lies to be lies. Where is the Mayor's house, please?"

"Just to the left of here. Off the main road," Stanley said.

"Thank you, Stanley. You've been most helpful. My dear, I will secure a couple rooms for us at the local inn," he said and gestured for her to step close to hear his whisper. "I would _strongly_ suggest that you remain at my side. If you are already recognized, word is going to spread of your arrival. And, if the villagers thought you were dead, they may want to see your resurrection for themselves."

"Of course," she nodded. He didn't like how Stanley was watching her. Something irritated him about it now. And for him to think that she was his companion? For traveling and detective cases, yes. That she was. But anything more was preposterous! And yet, as he looked at her from the corner of his eye, he began to think. He never got the idea to see if something more could be achieved. And she clearly didn't need the idea of any form of commitment right now. Sighing to himself, he let the thoughts push away from his mind. He was on a case. He had to see it through to the end.


	4. Chapter 4

There was only one spare room available, much to their surprise at how long it's been since the inn had new visitors. They both agreed to make due in varied turns for sleeping and bathing arrangements. He was, however, correct about the news of her presence being in the town spreading like wildfire. They spent a bit of precious time trying to find the keys. No one really picked up or kept up from the lack of clients and visitors. They probably had the cleanest room in the whole place, from what he judged on the room conditions.

Not even ten minutes went by after they got into their hotel room when people were starting to show up to ask for her. He was rather glad that they shared the room now. He was able to bar her off from the curious townsfolk. He finally suggested to them to hold a town meeting of her arrival. He would show up with her, and the truth of what happened could finally be revealed in full. The idea was embraced and quickly passed on to the Mayor of the town.

"You've been missed, it seems," Dupin said.

"I'm honestly not sure why," Marjery frowned. "I was never very popular."

"This is very baffling to be sure," he agreed. "Come to think of it, I've never even seen this town on a map. Most small towns tend to be left off of it, anyways. Unless one knows how to get there, or stumbles on them, do towns like this one get discovered."

"It's rare for people to leave," she sighed. "But, it can't be helped. Not many know where to go or have the funds to move."

"And you didn't?"

"No. I just packed up my things after learning of the betrothal and started walking. With a wing and a prayer, as they say. My Mother was the one that caught me leaving the house, though, with my luggage in hand. She asked what I was doing, and I said that I was a grown woman and had the right to make my own choices. I didn't want marriage. I told her that I decided to try and make my own ends meet. I didn't want them to decide for me."

"How did she take that?"

"She was livid. She had my Father come in next to scream at me. I was told that I was cut off from the moment I left the house. I agreed to it, much to their surprise. Then I said that, if I got married, I'd be leaving the house, anyways. So, I'd be cut off, regardless. That had my Father fairly speechless."

"Well, he would have put his foot in his mouth with those words! I do wonder if they were trying to marry you off to pay a few debts," Dupin pondered aloud.

"I don't know of any debts," she frowned.

"Most parents won't involve their children in money matters," he said wisely. "And, I can put down money on this, that after you left, they started to look for a suitable candidate for Katrina."

"And the Mayor's son would definitely fit in her criteria," she muttered.

"Calm yourself, my dear," he soothed. "All of this will be settled in time."

"Maybe we should just leave here," she whispered. "The moment you deduced that the letters were simply ensnaring traps, I should have burned them and forgotten them."

"Marjery! That is _not_ how a true detective works!" he said with dismay at her. "We will get to the bottom of this mystery. Whether it takes the rest of the day, or the rest of the week. We will see this through to the end. We have those letters as evidence against your sister. To show that she was lying to you. Only after she admits her guilt and all is laid bare shall we go. But, I'm still very curious as to why your parents wanted you to be married off. It makes no sense to me."

"I don't know what to think of it, either!" she said and started to pace the room. He watched her and moved to her side to rest his hands on her shoulders to calm her. As he gazed at her in thought, he came to a rather brilliant idea. And it would help him test a few personal theories, too.

"You know, our new friend, Stanley, may have given me the best idea that I could have possibly hoped for," Dupin now said with a rather smug smile.

"Oh?" she frowned.

"We'll pretend to be an engaged couple," he mused. Now she looked at him with complete surprise. "This way, your parents can't order you to be married off again. I can protect you and ensure that you are always at my side in this odd town. There's only one problem with this, though."

"There are a lot of problems with it!" she said quickly.

"Trust me," he said. He went to his luggage and opened it up to inspect what he brought. He rummaged around a bit and located his pocket watch. "This chain is all gold. The top ring could fit your ring finger quite nicely. Do you have any nippers with you? Something to help pry the chain apart?"

"Me? Why would I carry such a thing?" she asked.

"Damn! How about tweezers? No, nippers would need to be the best. We need those before going to this town meeting. Let me check with the front desk. Stay here. I have a key, so I'll open the door. I don't want you to open the door for anyone. There is a peephole, though. I might lose my key, knowing my habits. If someone knocks, and it isn't me, ignore it. Understood?"

"Of course," she nodded. Now that he went to the main desk, his mind was filled with rare, childish thoughts. What's come over him? There was a part of him that was intrigued that he'd be testing the waters of a relationship. Even though it was false, it would give him an idea of what it could be like now. And, the more he thought about it, the more he realized how compatible Marjery was for him. He wouldn't have given it a second thought if it wasn't for Stanley's jealous behavior. Maybe, before they left, he would thank the man for opening up his eyes.

When he got to main desk, he found no one there. Finding it odd, he checked the area and found the nippers he needed. He would see about returning them when he was done. Heading back to his room, he knocked on the door carefully. He heard her footsteps come up and the door opened. He slipped in and locked the door behind him. Walking over to his pocket watch, he carefully removed the link around the first ring. Inspecting it carefully, he nodded.

"All right. Place this on," he said. "I would do it, but…"

"No, I understand," she nodded and placed the ring on her left ring finger. "It fits well!"

"Good. Now, I may have to call you something that only one of a close relation may call you. Do you have any nicknames that I can use?"

"Oh. You can call me Maggie," she smiled softly.

"Very well, Maggie," he said gently. "Another thing, I may have to press a kiss to you here and there. I'll not go near your mouth, though. Just on your hand and temple. It is only to help with the acting. And you can call me what you always call me."

"Must we go through with this charade?" she frowned.

"If it is to help us get to the bottom of things, then yes. We must," he nodded. "We will need to do a bit of rehearsal acting, though. Just to get it down right."

"Um, I am a bit worried, though," she admitted.

"About what?"

"We told Stanley that I was not in a relationship with you."

"Oh. I'll tell him that he gave me the idea to propose to you," he shrugged. At her look of complete amusement, he grinned softly. "After the jealous vibe I got from him…"

"What?" she frowned.

"You didn't sense it?" he chuckled. "It's fine. Now, ah, Maggie, we need to get a few motions down. I believe that the next ten minutes should be safe for us to work with."

"If you say so, Dupin," she shrugged.

"No, that won't work," he frowned. "You need to say my name softer. Like we do in a whisper, only louder for others to hear you."

"Oh," she said with a small frown. She looked very uncomfortable with it.

"My dear, I'm not trying to force this on you. It is only to get to the meat of the problem here."

"I understand that. It's just…people will expect us to talk about love and such…"

"We care about each other as best friends. So, in that sense, I do care greatly for your well-being. Enough to have me play out this wonderful charade with you to find out what is going on."

"I suppose," she sighed. Then she blinked when he pulled her close and gazed into her eyes.

"Maggie, what's wrong?" he asked gently. She stiffened up right then. The way he said her name like that completely threw her off-guard.

"I…" she trembled.

"Ah. It's all right, you know," he smiled. "Remember why we are doing this. I will have to speak your name like that in front of the others. I may have to do a lot of other things, too. But, I will never touch you in a manner that you deem inappropriate. Even in public, I would refrain from doing so. Such a thing is something that even I would abhor."

"It just…caught me by surprise," she admitted. "I never knew my name could be said like that."

"You've never been in a relationship?" he asked.

"No," she shivered. "I never…wanted to be in one…after what my parents…"

He narrowed his eyes and actually hugged her to him. He easily stood a good foot taller than her. He held her until she finally relaxed. "That's it, Maggie. We will find out what happened. Stay at my side through all of this. I couldn't solve a damned puzzle on my own if I tried, anyways."

"Is that why you get those puzzle locks? To watch me do them?" she muttered.

"It's quite possible," he chuckled. He actually liked feeling her against him. She was just as speechless about the emotions going through her.

"What do we do…if the acting changes…?" she whispered. "If it becomes more?"

"Hmm? Oh. Well, we won't know that. Will we? Anyways, we need to focus. We have a town meeting to go to. A sister to put in place. And a truth to uncover. Right?"

"Right," she nodded.

"Ten more minutes of rehearsing out what to say, how to say it and various other things until we are comfortable. We need to act completely natural with no hesitations. That will give us away."

"Of course, Dupin," she said with a soft, warm smile. Now that caught him by surprise.

"Now I see what you mean. Ehm…right…" he said as he refocused. _It's just acting you fool!_

"Should I not say it like that?" she frowned.

"No! You did it perfectly. I am the one caught by surprise this time," he chuckled. "Let's change ten minutes to twenty."

"Okay," she giggled softly.


	5. Chapter 5

When they walked into the small room that was clearly dubbed with a large sign, 'The Town Hall', Dupin kept a casual arm around her to hold her close. He also noticed that practically all of the lights were lit up. It was a bit past dusk now, so there was no choice in that. The moon was starting to come out, but it would take a bit more for it to reach a peak point to be effective. When he looked around the room, he saw that Stanley was there with who appeared to be his father. The Mayor and his son were there and dressed in what traditional finery they had in dark reds and gold embroidery. They had to be there to monitor the situation. And, like the others, they wanted to learn the truth.

It looked like everyone simply had to appear for this event. From the youngest child to the oldest resident. This included Marjery's sister and her parents. Dupin regarded everyone casually. He did notice that Stanley's eyes were showing intense jealousy once more. He saw the supposed ring on Marjery's hand. Marjery kept her eyes lowered. Dupin already felt her fist balling up on his coat. He pressed a comforting hand to her back, leaned a bit heavily on his cane and watched the room calmly.

"Is it really you, Maggie?" her mother said with a touch of hopefulness.

"It is, Mother. Katrina sent me a letter that you and Father were killed in a carriage wreck after I left. Then I received another letter just earlier today telling me that your graves were desecrated," Marjery said a bit stiffly. "I only recently discovered that it was all a hoax. This was after I arrived."

"What?" her father asked. He turned to look at Katrina. She was hovering behind her husband.

"You told us that she died!" her mother spat at her daughter.

"We have enough lies here to last a decade," Dupin said calmly. "Marjery is now engaged to be married. To me. I know, Stanley. But, after the look you gave her, I knew that I was the best choice for her. We have worked together for four years. The same amount of time it was when she left this place. She stopped by my office at an advertisement in the paper. She solved one of my cleverest puzzles. She earned her place as my assistant. I am Detective Dupin. I'm sure you all have heard of me."

"You're…" the Mayor gaped.

"Yes. And I was the one that discovered that the letters were both scams," he said with a mild glare at the guilty Katrina. "Why did you do it?"

"Because Mother and Father were so upset at her leaving!" Katrina said in her chiming tone.

"So, you couldn't have just written about that instead?!" Marjery hissed. "I believed they were dead for four years, Katrina! I was so heart-broken! Why would I want to come back to a place that only gave me bad memories?! I just…I want to go…"

"Maggie, what did we talk about?" Dupin whispered softly to her. Katrina's petite jaw dropped at how her sister's name was said with so much care. "What did we agree on?"

"To finish this," she swallowed. He pressed a kiss to her forehead and smiled.

"That's right," he nodded. Then he looked at the others in the room. Stanley's face was completely twisted with a jealous rage. "And Stanley, you were not her type. She was also not ready for marriage at the time. With all of these rules and conditions about wedlock being thrown at her, I decided to safe-guard her from it all. And, yes, I care about her, too. Instead of charging her a fee for this, I optioned to come here of my own free will to help her. She has helped me solve many great cases. I owed this one to her. Now, we shall find out the truth of this matter. Mister Marco Delury, I presume?"

"Yes," the man nodded. He looked like he was starting to fatten a bit from age. Even his hair was starting to grey. "I just have to ask, Detective Dupin. My daughter is at least in her mid-twenties. You look like my age at fifty-three!"

"I am, actually, in my mid-forties," Dupin smirked softly. "Granted, I am a touch on the older side. But, that doesn't matter. I owe much of my most famous cases to Marjery. But, we are here because of the lies thrown about by her younger sister. I can only guess that you spent money to hire a spy to track her down? It would have to be the only way to find her and torment her."

"Katy?! You told me you needed money for a new dress!" her husband said with shock.

"And when I first gave her my location, she sent men to hound after me with hopes to get me attracted to one. Or, as Dupin had deduced, to force me to come back here to get away from them," Marjery said. Katrina swallowed at the glares in her direction.

"But, aside from her sister being a filthy liar," Dupin said carelessly. He was clearly acting out his care to Marjery now. Or was it really acting at this point from all that's being revealed? "I wish to know why the parents of my fiancée wanted to marry her off at such a time."

"Don't say anything," Stanley's father growled. Now Dupin rose a brow. Something was definitely afoot. Marjery was simply stunned by the order.

"It was an agreement that went sour," Marco said calmly.

"So, you wanted her to get married over an agreement?" Dupin frowned. "Likely for a debt."

"Come over for supper," Francine said quickly. "We need to catch up with our daughter."

"That's fine. However, I will not let her out of my sight," he warned. They agreed and the parents left soon after to prepare a small feast. Dupin didn't fail to notice the odd limp that Marco had. For some reason it looked oddly familiar to Stanley's limping gait. Why was that?

"I'll want to find out more about this agreement," the Mayor said lightly.

"But, Mister Belmer," the man started.

"No, Bobby! Something happened without my approval. I need to know," the Mayor said.

"And you and I need a chat," the Mayor's son said to Katrina.

"But…Jacob…" she fretted.

"No. You lied to me about money. I want to know how much was spent. Let's go," the young man grumbled. Dupin watched various townsfolk leave. He noticed that same limping gait in quite a few of the young boys and men. That struck him as very odd. He also didn't fail to notice how Stanley's gaze never left Marjery, and his arm tightened a bit more around her. When Stanley's glare met Dupin's eyes, the younger man actually winced at the glimmer of protective wisdom and power that was held in the calm, cool gaze. The detective was famous and likely had enough wealth to back him.

"Nice to know you landed a rich man," Stanley said as he left.

"I didn't intend for this!" Marjery snapped back. He stopped to turn and stare at her.

"I picked her because she was the cleverest girl I ever met," Dupin said in a cool tone.

"Oh, really? Then prove me wrong!" the man said and handed over a puzzle box. "Open it."

"Fine," Marjery muttered. Dupin leaned against his cane, but he still kept an arm around her. He watched her effortlessly put the rather simple picture puzzle together. When the small box was opened, she paused at the note within it. She took it out and Dupin took the box from her. She opened the note to read it, and she gasped at what it said.

"That's from a diary," Dupin frowned when he read it from over her shoulder.

"Yes. From mine," she grimaced. Now he looked at her with shock.

"Since he's your new fiancée," Stanley smirked. "I thought he should know that."

"And you are a knave for going through her personal belongings and ripping out a page of her secrets!" Dupin said with a hard glare. That got Stanley gaping. "Where is the rest of her diary?!"

"Somewhere all over town," he muttered and sped off. She was shaking at what the page said.

"How long ago did you write that? About committing suicide for being unhappy?" Dupin asked her softly. "We both know it isn't going to happen now."

"It was…when I was much younger…in my teens…" she shook. "I was…so depressed…"

"Hush, Maggie," he whispered. It was such a normal thing to say it like that now. The rehearsing did help with that, but he knew it also calmed her to hear it.

"If any knew…"

"We'll find the pages. They can't be far. We'll look under logs. In trees. In trash. Everywhere. How many pages do you believe you had?"

"I never wrote much," she admitted. "About twelve."

"And what page is this?" he asked as he held it.

"One of the last. I think. I dated each one."

"So I see. Okay. We've had the odds against us before. I believe that we will wait until midnight. Then we will search the town. Right now, we have a meeting with your parents over dinner. Do you remember where you used to live?"

"I do. It isn't too far off."

"Then let's go," he nodded and led her out into the night air.


	6. Chapter 6

As they walked down the old, cobblestone path, he paused to watch her suddenly dart over to a bush to pull out another page of her diary. Nodding to her, she got back into his protective embrace and they continued to walk. Another page was found in the middle of the road, but it was damp from a small puddle. He took it from her and found a heat lamp to hook up and dry it out for her. Now with three pages found, he continued to escort her to her parent's house.

At the sight of the old, familiar dirt trail, she found herself cringing inwards. He looked at her with concern, but he clucked his tongue like he used to do. That small motion brought her training back into gear. She steeled her jaw and nodded. He nodded back to her with a smile and they continued. She had another hesitation at the sight of the old family home. It looked like a two-story mansion from a completely medieval era. The moonlight glow cast an eerie shadow over it. Something didn't feel right.

"Marjery, what's wrong?" he finally asked.

"I just…feel that…something bad is…inside the house…" she trembled. As much as he was concerned for her well-being, he let his strict, detective persona take over. At the way his back straightened when he looked at her, she about-faced him instantly.

"What is our mission here?"

"To uncover the truth."

"Has it stopped you from the other horrors we've seen across the globe?"

"No."

"Should it stop you now?"

"No," she said in a calmer tone.

"Granted, this is your childhood home. It probably instilled some deep-rooted fear in you. I can understand that. Just remember a few things. You are an adult and you left it. You can leave all of this behind again. Also, I am with you now. As you were my strength, I am yours. I am protecting you. But, I cannot protect you if you will not let me. Will you let me protect you?"

"Yes," she nodded frantically. She was wringing her hands together. It was a sign of nervousness. He pulled her close to press another kiss to her forehead.

"You are my dearest friend," he smiled and ran a hand over her back. "We will confront and conquer this evil you fear together. Don't worry. Come now. Your parents are waiting."

She took a deep, calming breath before nodding again. As they walked past a stone well, she paused to look at it in thought. She remembered something important. And it was something she simply couldn't talk about. She had repressed a lot of memories on leaving her hometown, and now they were coming back to her as though a floodgate was opened. There was something she hid in the well that would become vital to their survival in the town. And, possibly, outside of it. Running her hand over the mouth of the well, she pushed in various stones in a pattern. A secret compartment opened up to reveal a small bronze key. Taking it, she blushed at his incredulous look for an explanation.

"Okay, okay! I liked puzzle locks, too," she shrugged. That had him grinning from ear to ear.

"What's the key for?" he asked.

"I forget. It will come to me eventually," she grinned softly at him. He rose a brow. He said the same thing about the silver key she found. "What? I learn from the best."

"That you do," he nodded, led her up to the porch and rang the bell at the front door. Francine answered it and let them in. As much as Marjery wanted to hug her parents, something was telling her not to do it just yet. Marco nodded to them from where he was sitting and eating at the table. Once Marjery and Dupin were seated and served some roasted chicken, they were able to discuss the past cases that he did. Marco was rather impressed.

"So, do you truly plan to marry our daughter?" Francine asked when she finished her plate.

"Yes," Dupin nodded. "I care for her very much."

"Do you love her?" Marco smiled.

"I do," Dupin answered him evenly. Marjery blushed softly. It was the type of love for friends, but it was more than enough for her. "I did want to ask why you wished her to be married off when you did. It seems unethical to me."

"Well," Marco sighed. "You were correct about it being a form of debt. However, it wasn't for money. It's more…complex than that."

"Truly?" Dupin asked as he sipped some water.

"It's rather hard to explain," Francine seemed to tremble. "It's a bad omen for residents to leave town. Now that Marjery is back, will she be living here again?"

"No. I'm a famous detective. My skills are always needed abroad. She is the best assistant I've ever known. And, as you can see, I've taken a distinct liking to her. Our love is just as strong as our friendship. I prefer intellect over looks, too. She knows me better than most ever will," Dupin chuckled.

"I can see that. If you retire, would you move here?" Marco asked.

"That may be possible," Dupin shrugged. At Marjery's sudden cough and sip of water, he took that as a clear 'no' for any future move-ins. It was time to end the dinner. "Anyways, we need to retire."

"Actually, Dupin, I would like to see my old room first," Marjery said.  
"Oh? We can do that, my dear," he smiled. She moved into the small room, and he frowned at how cramped it looked. She clearly didn't have much room to work with. But, she was able to go to the back of her old wall and press in a block. A small section slid over to reveal a bronze box. Taking the key she got from the well, she unlocked it. Then she pulled out two small, clear crystals. They looked completely identical in shape and size. Such a thing was a rarity.

"Dupin," she said softly. "Take this."

"What is it?" he asked.

"Something that may help you while you are here," she said carefully. "I have one, too. They are supposed to be tracking crystals. Enhanced by the moon. It's an ancient thing around here. If something happens to me, the crystal you have will lead you to me and vice versa. They are made in pairs for this."

"What are you trying to tell me?" he asked.

"Not here," she frowned. "I…remembered something. And I think I know why I'm wanted back here. We need to find the rest of my diary pages. There is a code in them that will be revealed when we have them all in order. It's for the library in town."

"Does it relate to our being here to begin with?" he asked carefully.

"It does," she nodded in a hushed whisper. "And…I think it's why my parents wanted me to be married off. Um…not here. We can't talk here. I know a place."

"All right," he nodded back. She put the wall back to rights and pulled out an old toy from her youth. When her mother saw the toy, she chuckled.

"You've had that stuffed rabbit for years," Francine laughed. "I can see why you wanted it."

"I know. Anyways, Dupin and I will be at the hotel," Marjery nodded.

"You could stay here," Marco said.

"We'll be fine at the hotel," Dupin smiled with a wave. When they walked out of the house, he glanced over at a shadow that bolted past them. They were being stalked. Slipping an arm around her waist, he let her lead him off a beaten path. It was hard for anyone following them to get through the tricky pathway now. She knew every single twist and turn through it. Dupin would have been lost without her! When they got to the center of a small grove, she sat on the mossy ground and gestured for him to join her. He was simply amazed at her mysterious past.

"We need to stay here for the night," she whispered. "It's not safe until morning."

"But…our luggage…" he whispered.

"They won't tamper with belongings. Just us," she trembled. "I often came here as a child. To hide from everyone. If I remember…ah…"

He watched her grab a large stone and start digging into the dirt a bit of a ways away. She pulled out another small key that glinted of old steel. She moved to his side and pressed it into his hands. At the sight of it, he had to ask, "What is this for?"

"In case…we get caught…" she shivered. There was something in her eyes that told him that the assistant he knew was no longer present.

"Maggie…what's going on around here? What are you remembering?" he frowned.

"My diary. It has the answers. We found two more pages. The one you dried just a bit ago. Read it, please. We don't have much time," she swallowed. Narrowing his eyes at her, he found the dried page. The only problem was that there wasn't enough light. Even with the moon out, the shaded enclosure kept too much light out.

"It's too dark here," Dupin sighed.

"There was a reason I grabbed my old rabbit," she said with a timid giggle. The rabbit had a zipper on the back. She was able to tug it down and pulled out an old lighter. Smiling softly, he took the lighter and brought out the flame to read. His jaw dropped. When he looked at her, she had her back to him and she was trembling. He could tell she was weeping.

"I'm speechless…" he whispered.

"We…really need…to leave here…" she said among her tears.

"I noticed that practically all of the men, young and old, had a particular limping gait when they walked. I didn't even think that it could have been a purely genetic trait! This…the whole town…everyone is related to each other?!" he said with shock. "That's why you really left, isn't it?"

"It's why…I didn't want to marry…" she shivered. "I made myself forget…everything! I didn't want to remember! I wanted to start fresh! I…"

"And you have," he said and pulled her close to rock her.

"But…you are fresh blood!" she whispered with a form of fear. "They will want you to stay!"

"To strengthen their bloodline," he winced. "I need to know the history of this town."

"The library, Dupin. It's all in there. But, we need the rest of my diary pages."

"We will find them," he promised. "Hmm. That's also why you protested to me about even thinking about marriage. Wasn't it?"

"Yes," she nodded and shivered. "I didn't remember at first. But…now I know why…"

"So…who is Stanley to you?"

"He's…my cousin…" she cringed. "His father is my Uncle."

"I see. And the Mayor and his son?"

"They are also distant relations. Cousins of a sort, I think."

"And they saw hope that you returned with me with prospects of wedding you…"

"I didn't want it…to get this bad. Us, that is."

"What do you mean?"

"The way we are now. I was just…so happy to be simply your assistant…"

"Marjery," he said in the old, familiar tone she knew. "In the public eye, we act. When we are alone like this, it's just the same as always. You _are_ my assistant. Let's finish this case so we can leave and get back home. Away from here. The sooner I gain access to the library, the sooner we can put all of this behind us. Let's move."

"Yes, Detective Dupin," she said as she regained herself. As much as he wanted to tell himself that it was the same as always, he knew she was right. The acting had become something more. He simply couldn't let that little truth out just yet. It wasn't safe.

"Let's inspect the graveyard again. I saw plenty of loose lamps that we can take from the main street. We can each take one and search for the letters. And, no, we are not separating. I doubt we will get any sleep, either. We've tackled tougher cases than this!"

"That we have," she nodded and led him back out to the main dirt path. Their next course of action was to collect her diary pages. They had nine left to find. They only had until dawn.


	7. Chapter 7

said calmly. "I saw some boards and a rope not far from us."

"A rope ladder! Absolutely genius, my dear!" he smiled. She blushed softly as she always had. He chuckled and paused at a familiar feeling he got on leaving the cemetery before. A feeling that something wanted more. Or was it he, himself, that wanted that? When he glanced over at her making the new rope ladder, he caught his breath. He put it all into perspective. She was something more. He wanted her to always be at his side.

At the sound of a soft, ghostly chuckle, he sighed. Did her past relations set him up with this? Did they know something that he didn't? The dead always did seem to know more.

"Detective Dupin?" she asked dutifully. She noticed him watching her.

"A moment, my dear. I need to rest these old bones for a bit. Keep working on that ladder," he ordered lightly. She nodded and continued to work. She had a few more boards to do. Deciding to meditate for a little bit, he was able to carefully sit himself down on the ground and set his cane close by. Taking a few deep breaths, he closed his eyes and cleared his mind.

_"Can he hear us?!"_ a female ghost whispered.

_"It's possible. Detective! If you can hear us, we want you to break this cycle. Get our descendant out of town! Do not delay! Once you get your answers, you MUST leave! If you don't, she will perish!"_ a male ghost seemed to shout at him to be heard.

_"The others are bound here. Cursed as we are. Our town made an oath. A debt to be paid for all eternity. You need to take her and go!"_ another male voice shouted.

_"If you fail to do this before dawn…"_ the female ghost whispered.

_"You will both be trapped with us. Unable to leave…"_ the first male ghost seemed to say sorrowfully. _"You paid us respects. None have done such in years. She is a good girl. Please…take care of her. She's all…we have left…to help us…"_

When the voices faded off, he snapped his eyes open. He couldn't believe what he heard. He glanced over at Marjery. She was just finishing up the last of the ladder. She didn't hear anything at all. Why was that? Thinking hard, he nodded to himself and rose up to stretch. Using his cane a touch, he walked over to her. "Good job! I want my hat back. Damn that wind! We need to hurry. Dawn will be upon us soon enough. I don't want them to wake up to see what we are doing. I'm also hoping to be out of this town before that happens."

"I just finished it," she said and rose up with the ladder. He walked over to the house that held his top hat, and she managed to hook the top of the ladder around a sturdy post. She was able to climb it and retrieve it. She also found, much to her surprise, another page that was right next to it. He smiled at their luck, put his hat back on and they collected the ladder. Who knew when it would be needed again? When they neared some farmland, she seemed to pause. She sensed something.

"Marjery?" he asked lightly.

"This is Stanley's area. His home. We must tread carefully," she warned. "He has various alarms and triggers for thieves. I think that, if he really did destroy my diary, most of it would be here."

"We'll tread lightly," he agreed. She guided him through various vegetable gardens, a pasture for goats and a small section for berry bushes. "How do you know your way?"

"I didn't realize it at the time," she said in a soft whisper. "But, he would bring me here to play with him at times. He also insisted that I hide my diary here. When I started to write it, that is."

"Would he read it?" he frowned.

"No. But, I'm sure he did after I left," she sighed. "I was right. There's the binding."

They found it at a base of a tree. The weak lock was easily snipped with a set of wire cutters to show the vandalism that was done. The other pages they needed were torn to pieces around it. It was likely that the wind did the same with the pages they found around town in blowing them around like his hat just a bit ago. He was just glad that the shredded pieces were all there. He studied the fine shreds and scowled softly. "We'll need some tape."

"I did bring some. But, it's at the hotel room in my luggage," she said.

"Then let's go," he nodded. When they got off the property to the main street, she took in a deep breath for control. He knew that feeling all too well.

"Not far now," she smiled.

"Good. And, just in case," he muttered. He finally slipped his arm around her and pulled her close. He had been longing to do just this, too. "Just stroll with me. Make it seem like you were showing me some of your old haunts. And I did like them."

"I'm glad you liked them," she said in a soft whisper. "I'm surprised that I remembered them."

"I am fairly sure that they'll look different in the daylight," he chuckled casually. She leaned into his frame, and he smiled down at her.

"I'm usually not accustomed to this," she admitted softly. "But…I fear it's growing on me."

"I must admit that I've made the same assessment," he said lightly. She looked at him with a blush, and he squeezed her gently.

"Do we still plan to go to the event tomorrow night?" she smiled. She was wisely avoiding what it was called. At the thought, he grinned softly.

"We may be able to make it. A detective's work is never done."

"That it isn't," she agreed.

"I did think over what your father said during supper," he muttered in a casual way in case anyone was listening in. "He did offer us a chance to move back here."

"You were thinking about it?" she asked.

"It's a very nice town! I'm sure that something could be arranged," he said a bit loudly. He was throwing them off. There was no way that he'd want to come back. He was going to heed the advice of the dead. He'd be a fool if he didn't. At the small wink he gave her, she caught on.

"I did miss this place," she nodded.

"That you did. But, we need to retire. It's much too late. Come, my dear. Let's go," he said, as he led her into the inn. She followed him dutifully. When they got to their room, he held her back. Their room door was kicked open. Narrowing his gaze, he took her by the hand and cautiously entered the room. Their belongings were all over the floor. The bed was overturned. Nothing was stolen, but he realized something. They were being looked for relentlessly.

"I was right…to stay away…" she trembled. "To keep us away…"

"Let's collect our things," he said calmly. "This isn't the first time it happened."

"No. It isn't," she agreed. As the room was set back to rights, they were able to piece their baggage back together. She found the tape they needed, and he had the newly cleaned off table to set the pieces on. They worked the scraps together and taped the last five pages up. She organized them and motioned for her lighter. Each page had a specific engraving that she did with a hard pencil. Finding the lines first with the flame, she took a pencil and carefully coated over them.

He saw the odd shapes and pondered over them. They looked like ancient runes. Now that they had the code, it was time to see to the library. He was sure that they could be watched. "You still have that rope ladder, my dear? It may be time to use it."

"Yes, Dupin," she nodded. He smiled softly at her with a nod. They were able to secure it and leave it where it was. They would have to get back into the room this way for their luggage. She was able to lead him to the library near the edge of town. At the simple steel lock, he frowned.

"We don't have a saw, do we?" he asked. "Or a file."

"Um…I gave you a key," she smiled. He blinked and laughed softly at his denseness. Taking out the small, steel key, he used it in the lock.

"So, this is the secret?" he smiled.

"Yes. In case something happened to me. You would learn the truth, at least," she said. "As well as clues to my whereabouts."

"I said that you weren't leaving my side. Didn't I?" he muttered and tossed the opened lock aside. "I won't give you up so easily."

"Thank you," she whispered.

"And thank you," he said gently. "Let's find out what we can. Then we need to leave."

"Oh?"

"It's important that we leave before dawn. Half of the night is gone now. Time is against us. We need to be swift," he said. At that, they entered the old building to learn its secrets.


	8. Chapter 8

The room they were in was stacked with old and new books. But, the place they needed to look was behind a special door. On finding various books to place on a shelf, they managed to make a bookcase slide back to reveal the hidden area. Taking out her diary pages, they figured out the proper code for the runic buttons. When the door unlocked, she led him in.

In this room, it was empty save for a single book in old leather binding. The place was clearly untouched, but it was kept up. The room seemed sacred in this manner. It was the first book on the town history, after all. It was in the center of the room on a podium. She walked over to it with him and opened it to flip through the aged pages. It was here that he learned what he needed to learn.

The town of Luxxon was founded over a hundred years ago, and it was flourishing for a time. Then, when other towns started around it and began to become more successful, it fell into decline from lack of trade goods. The last descendants of the town had gotten together for a small meeting. There were only ten of them. Three women and seven men. They all came to the conclusion to simply keep from moving out. It was their home, anyways. Why leave? But, to do that meant that they would have to share the three women there. They made a pact to stick to it.

Any new strangers that happened about the town would be pulled in and trapped until they agreed to simply stay and help rebuild the population. Life wasn't all bad in the town. It was just forbidden for them to leave. Most that appeared were travelers with no home to speak of. So, most arrangements were agreed to. More stubborn ones had more drastic measures done to them. When the town was removed from global maps, the loss of new bloodlines wasn't too bad. There was enough to sustain the town. At least for the next fifty years. Then the bloodline began to decline again from inbreeding.

Marjery's family was a seventh generation. The limping gait was a common ailment in the hips of the first founder. It was purely genetic. Dupin realized that he must be someone new that the town hadn't seen for years. Maybe even a decade. They would surely trap him and use him as they saw fit. And, with Marjery having experienced new skills from being outside of the town, they could have used her to lure in fresh blood. The ghosts were right. They would become trapped if they were found. He couldn't possibly bring this town to justice on his own with her. He needed backup.

"I've seen enough," he whispered. "I want to take this book with me as evidence of the kidnapping crimes that this town had done, but we'll leave it here to avoid suspicion for now. Ah! Let me use your pencil. The writing on the book is deep enough to make some etching on some of your diary pages that haven't been touched. And…good! We have our evidence in the form of carbon pencil copies! Now we need to leave. This town is better off left undiscovered if nothing can be done. I'll warn many to steer clear. We need to go."

She nodded and they left the library. On returning to the hotel, he paused. The rope ladder was missing. At what he saw, she said, "They are waiting for us."

"To collect our things. Maybe to apprehend us as we do it. Well, none of it is really important to me. I can replace it," he nodded. "I brought no files with me or books."

"But…my things…" she frowned.

"How much did you bring?"

"Just a few petticoats and underthings. Nothing major."

"I'll replace those for you, too. We have overstayed our welcome. But…damn. My pocket watch. I need that. Be prepared for a confrontation," he said stiffly. She nodded with worry, and he held her close to his side. "Just stay with me. Do not leave my side for any reason."

"Yes, Dupin," she nodded. When they walked into the inn, the Mayor was waiting for them.

"It's about time you showed up," he said irritably.

"I believe you are called…Mister Belmer?" Dupin asked. "The town Mayor?"

"Yes," the man nodded. Now Dupin looked at him sternly. He knew what to say.

"Good. I have a complaint. My fiancée and I were _very_ discouraged to have found our luggage tampered with just recently," Dupin said with a touch of annoyance. That had the other man pale. "Because of this, we were going to request another room. But, no one was here. So, we searched the town to find someone. I had her come with me, as I didn't feel safe to leave her alone. I'm sure you would do the same with someone you care for. As it is, we demand another room! Before we talk to you. Also, we want to inspect our things again to ensure that they were not tampered with. And, yes, we left the rope ladder outside the room to avoid being seen. We didn't want to give the intruder a chance to know that we were here. Or to see us leaving to find a figure of authority."

"Oh…" Mr. Belmer frowned.

"Granted, we've been through prior scrapes before. We've had our things sorted through. But for it to happen in her hometown is simply disgraceful!" he snapped.

"I can have another room prepared for you, but it won't be until tomorrow," the Mayor started.

"Unacceptable!" Dupin grounded out. "I no longer feel safe here. Neither does she. We are going to collect our things and find another place to stay."

"Well, my question first," he said. "Do you both plan to stay? To live in the town?"

"We were thinking about it. Just remember, I am a detective. I will be searched for. If not by those that need me, then by local authorities. I am a man of the law. And I've seen things that make a simple room break-in seem like child's play," Dupin warned. "Now let us collect our things. You can get another room ready for us. We'll wait outside."

"Of course," the man nodded. He only grumbled to himself, though. No one else had cleaned another room in years. He had his work cut out for him. He also knew that there was no way he could do so much work this late at night on his own. He would need to wake up his son. Maybe even Katrina to help. It would be a nice punishment for her lies. He also hoped that, by doing this favor, it would also try to earn their trust to let them sleep in a new room. It always worked best to wait until they slept before attempting anything. "Let me get some help. Ah, ten minutes?"

"Fine," Dupin nodded. The moment he left, Dupin glanced at Marjery. "Now is our chance. Let's get our belongings and go."

"Will you feel a need to come back?" she whispered.

"Not without more assistance. Just you and I won't be enough, I fear," he admitted. They moved quickly into their room and grabbed their luggage. As they walked out of the inn, he sighed that they would have to walk. Then he glanced at her. "A wing and prayer, you said?"

"Yes, Detective Dupin," she said with a smile. "That was all I needed."


	9. Chapter 9

They moved out of the town at a brisk walk. They didn't look back, either. By the time the sun finally peered over the horizon, they had managed to reach a major crossway for carriages. It was just their luck that one was traveling on the same path they were on. The carriage was only carrying one passenger, too. A nobleman from a distant town. He encouraged them to board up on recognizing the detective. Once the carriage was underway, the portly nobleman was able to find out what happened.

"We were visiting my assistant's place of birth," Dupin said. He was offered some cheese and wine, which he accepted gladly. "Needless to say, we had overstayed our welcome."

"Truly?!" the man frowned and stroked his neatly trimmed beard.

"My family was happy to see me, but we did not like how we were treated with our belongings rummaged through. It was terrible," Marjery nodded.

"Such a tragedy! And you both were walking since then?" the man asked.

"Yes. Very exhausted, but very grateful to have run into you," Dupin smiled.

"Where is this town?" the man asked.

"I would advise to avoid it," Dupin warned. "They don't take well to outsiders. They almost imprisoned me for no reason. And this was even after they were told who I was."

"Such a shame," the man said with a hint of worry. Marjery was half asleep now. The stress she went through in the past twenty-four hours was finally hitting her.

"My dear, you can rest now. I'll wake you when we get to our destination," Dupin said softly. She yawned and nodded. He gestured for her to rest against his side. It was the only other place to do it.

"She is married now?" the man asked when he noticed the gold ring on her finger.

"Not exactly," Dupin sighed. "It was to protect her from a family that would have forced her into marriage. She had to pretend that she already was. Anyways, I need to get a bit of rest, too."

"I understand, but, a moment of your time? I was actually heading into the main city to see you," the man chuckled. Dupin rose a brow, but he carefully placed an arm around Marjery to stabilize her. She was already sleeping quite deeply. "I am Count DeMorgan. I'm sure you've heard of my estate?"

"That I have," Dupin nodded.

"I was wondering if you could help assist me with a problem I have," he sighed.

"How dire is it?"

"Oh, it's not too dire. If I could have your assistance in a week or two. That would be all."

"I can do that. I would have declined if it was right away."

"No, no! It's merely a small case with a missing heirloom piece. It went missing about a month ago, and none have been able to find it since. Even the best investigators I have can't figure it out!"

"I see. Very interesting. I may be able to give you a call in one week. I still have something else to clear up first. I should be able to help you after that."

"Ah. With her town?"

"In a manner of speaking, yes."

"I could send some support, too. As a form of down payment for your services."

"Really? I think we can work that in," Dupin grinned softly. This was simple proof of how powerful a man he was. The detective made new alliances wherever he went. At this new gesture of friendship, he confided in the man and showed him the diary with the old book references. The man was clearly appalled at what was discovered.

"It's good you rescued her from her fate!" the Count said gruffly.

"I know. I was the one that she pretended to be engaged to. It was my idea," Duplin nodded at the man's look of surprise. "It was an interesting experience."

"Do you wish for this experience to end?" the Count easily noticed how Dupin was with her.

"In truth…I'm not sure. Marjery is, quite possibly, the only female that I've encountered that seems to know me the best. And she always helps me unlock my locks on a daily basis," he chuckled.

"So, you wish to marry her?"

"I was toying with the idea. But, I'm not sure how to bring it up."

"I do have an idea for you. She likes puzzles. It's quite obvious with your nature. Let me drop this into your lap," the Count grinned a touch boyishly. As the plan was laid out in full, Dupin could only smile. It would work neatly for what he needed to do. The entire idea was given over the rest of the two hours it took to finally reach the main town. Of course, Dupin had his own modifications to the supposed plan, but the main part would easily work for him. Bidding the Count a fond farewell, and accepting his calling card, the carriage took him and Marjery to his home.

"Maggie," he whispered softly to rouse her. "We're at my home. Let's bring our things inside. We'll rest more afterwards."

"Of course, Detective Dupin," she yawned.

"You know," he said softly. "If you wanted to, you can still call me Dupin. I never minded it."

"Oh. Um…sure…" she blushed softly. She was still exhausted, but she understood. She helped him bring down the luggage and carry it into his house.


	10. Chapter 10

He had set her up in a guest room. They both slept for a full six hours. He woke up first, though, and was quick to act on Count DeMorgan's idea right after showering and dressing. He called up a local jeweler for a complex order to be started. On getting the guarantee that it would be done in the next few hours, he chuckled and promised extra pay for the rush job and delivery of the finished product. Then he contacted the seamstress to let her know that the dress would be picked up shortly. On the offer of a delivery to cut down on travel time, he accepted.

After that, he called up the man in charge of the Officer's Ball. He was delighted that the detective and his guest would be able to attend. When Dupin dropped a hint of possible reinforcements needed, the man was quick to listen carefully. The phone was quickly passed on to the Chief with a brief explanation of the problem. He took the call without another moment to spare.

"You have proof of the crimes done?" the Chief asked.

"A whole book full," Dupin said. "Marjery and I both witnessed it, too."

"Say no more. I'll rally up the boys after the ball."

"If you could spare a man to check on Marjery's home, I would appreciate it. They know of her whereabouts now," he said. That was quickly agreed to, as well. At another thought, he mused at the idea of her moving in with him. But, that wouldn't be until she decided on what she wanted to do. He had more than enough space to accommodate her. He'd feel much better about it, too. The more he thought about it, the more he realized he couldn't fathom the idea of her living without him. Then he finally caved in at one thought. _I'm in love with her!_

He had to act cool, though. If he brought up this new emotion to her, she may become withdrawn. He witnessed this all too well with their rehearsal acts of affection. With a heavy sigh, he knew what he had to do. He had to act like nothing happened. At least for now. Knowing this, he wisely went into his study to draw up some paperwork and write out some notes of his new travels.

After an hour of intense notes, he glanced up to find her walking in with a small plate of toasted biscuits, jam and a pitcher of milk with two small mugs. Chuckling, he smiled and cleared a spot for her to set the tray. He was a touch hungry, too.

"I figured we could both use something," she smiled. "And your kitchen is a frightful mess! How am I supposed to find anything in it?"

"I know where to look," he said and spread a little jam on a biscuit.

"And your faucet was leaking. I had to fix that, too, just to wash up a few dishes," she mumbled and poured herself some milk. He rose a brow at her with a small smile.

"Just think of it as small tests to keep up your wit."

"Small tests? Really?"

"But, of course! I always have to have my assistant ready at a moment's notice."

"Speaking of being ready, did you want me to pick up the gown from yesterday?"

"No. It will be delivered soon. I also don't want you to go back to your apartment today. I have some authorities that are going to check in on it from time to time. _They_ know where you live now," he said with a slight warning tone. She could only nod in agreement. "You have your luggage here. It's plenty for now. Right?"

"Yes. You are correct. I'm good for a couple of days, if needed," she nodded again. "Um, do you still have the crystal with you? The one I gave you that was a match to mine?"

"The small one you gave me? Yes, I do."

"Please keep it on you. I'd feel…safer that way."

"I believe I left it on my night stand. Can you get it for me? I'll keep it in my breast pocket the moment I receive it," he said. She rose up quickly to do just that. He caught himself studying her figure in the slender white sleeping gown and robe she wore. He blinked himself back to reality and cleared his throat. He never saw her dress that way before. She actually had a stunning figure! It was going to be hard for him to keep with the act of playing it cool with that thought.

When she walked back in with the small crystal, he accepted it from her. He noticed how her dark brown hair was a touch loose, and it actually seemed to be able to stretch to the middle of her back. He didn't know she had hair like that! Was it even longer?

"Is there anything else you need me to get for you?" she asked.

"No. I'm good, thanks," he smiled. Then he noticed something. "Ah, where is the ring I gave you? You're not wearing it?"

"Oh! Well…I figured it was best to remove it. We don't need to keep up the act, right?"

"Ah. I suppose not."

"You sound…disappointed?"

"Not at all. I just didn't expect you to take it off so soon. I thought it fit you well."

"It did," she said with a soft blush. "But, it belonged to your pocket watch…"

"No, no. It's fine. I will need it back, though. To put back on the watch."

"I can get it for you," she nodded.

"Not yet. You should shower and clean up first. We do have plans for tonight."

"Ah, yes. The ball?"

"Exactly. The guest bathroom should be ready for you."

"You had a puzzle on that lock. Thankfully, I was able to solve it," she chuckled. "It took me a while to find the small wolf figures to put in place, though. You hid them quite well!"

"You were able to solve that lock?" he asked her with disbelief. "And locate the pieces?!"

"But, of course, my dear Detective Dupin," she giggled. He gave her another odd look of surprise. Then she found herself blushing hard. "Um, I'll go clean up…"

She was flustered and embarrassed now. She had no plans to call him that! Just as she reached the door, she found him behind her with his hands on her shoulders.

"Maggie…" he whispered. She tensed, but this time he felt it wasn't with awkward fear. "I want to…ask you something. Of importance."

"Yes?" she asked weakly.

"Would you move out of your small apartment…and live here? With me?" he asked slowly.

"W-what?!" she asked with complete shock and turned to face him.

"I just worry that you will be living alone in that place after everything I've learned about you," he sighed. "I would feel horrified if something happened to you."

At this, she swallowed and straightened herself up to say evenly, "You just want me here to clean up your messes and fix your puzzle locks when they fall apart, don't you?"

He threw his head back and laughed heartily before regarding her again. On thinking of what to say, he responded with, "You can think whatever you choose, my dear. I'm only thinking of your safety. So, I ask again. Will you live here with me? So that I can protect you? I'm sure you'll appreciate it when you don't have to travel across town to visit me anymore."

"True. I could give my shoes a rest," she chuckled.

"I'll even get you a set of slippers," he smiled.

"I've never had slippers before," she blushed. "Um…well…considering the circumstances…"

"I truly am thinking of your best interests."

"I know, Dupin. And I think I will have to decline your offer."

"Well, that's wonderful! Wait, what?!" he asked incredulously.

"I just…with everything going on…and with what happened yesterday…"

"Maggie, please…"

"I don't want you to call me that anymore, either…" she trembled. She was distancing herself from him. He didn't release her shoulders yet. Instead he evaluated everything. He figured it out.

"My dear, you don't have to protect me," he said gently.

"But I must!" she whimpered softly. "I have a very weak bloodline! I just…"

"I know what your heritage is now."

"But, it's worse than that," she whispered. "My family…they all end up dying young."

"What?" he blinked.

"It's a rare condition. I don't know if I have it. But…if I do…I don't want my children to have it, either! It's also why my parents wanted me to marry. To try and fulfill my life if something did happen. So, not only did I not want to get married, I didn't want to think that my life was too short. I'm not sure if that's also why the town did what it did to keep everything in. To only accept travelers that happened by. I honestly don't know…"

"Then we'll test your blood. Right now," he said with a look of determination. She gasped when he grabbed her hand and practically hauled her to his medical room. On looking at the lock, he groaned. "Marjery, I'm sorry. I just…you are my assistant. I care very deeply for your well-being. Please…"

"And I care very deeply for yours, too," she whimpered. "And I was right…"

"About what?"

"The rehearsals we did. They became something more."

"I won't lie to you, Maggie," he swallowed. "You're right. By a hundred percent. And it was Stanley that started the thoughts for me to pull off what I did with you."

"What?"

"You honestly didn't sense the sheer amount of jealousy that came from him, did you? I doubt you ever did," he frowned. "It affected me. It…rankled. I don't know how else to explain it. And I didn't want someone like him to have any more hold on you."

"So…you decided to put this burden on yourself?" she asked softly.

"I had to. I never asked about your past out of respect. But…the moment you called me in a terrified voice over that letter from your sister…I knew something was wrong. That I couldn't bear to hear that sort of terror in your voice. I didn't know it at the time, though. But, I do know this. I don't want to hear that come from you anymore. I dropped everything I was doing and came straight to you. In truth, I'm terrified to let you even leave my sight right now. Because they know where you live."

"Dupin…"

"I'd rather have them swear and kill themselves over a simple puzzle lock than be able to simply kick in a door to take you from me," he said bluntly. "You saved my life, Maggie. From a gunshot wound to the chest. From chandeliers crashing on me. Even being trapped by supernatural things. I know for a fact that I can't let you out of my life. I am your guardian angel, as you are mine."

She swallowed and trembled. Looking at the medical room lock, she sighed and said, "I need a pitcher and three cups of water. I need to balance these scales precisely."

"I'll get them for you," he smiled softly. He didn't leave just yet, though. Instead, he let one of his hands come up to gently caress her cheek. That was when she knew exactly how much he cared about her. She rested a hand on his and shivered.

"If you just stand here, I can't open the lock," she whispered.

"Then come with me to find what you need," he muttered gently. She looked up at him with her large, light-green eyes. Before he knew what was happening, he kissed her.

"Dupin…!" she gasped when he pulled himself back.

"I'm sorry!" he hissed. "I couldn't…"

She was breathing hard from the small shock. He was still shaking from what he did. When her hand moved to trace over his cheek, he winced. She knew that it wasn't with pain, either. After another deep breath for control, he kissed the inside of her palm and forced himself to stand tall. He glanced at the puzzle lock and gestured for her to follow him. She nodded and swallowed as she followed him into the kitchen. With her help, they found the items she needed for the lock. The pitcher was filled up and taken to the lock.

He watched her calmly measure out the various amounts needed to open the way to his medical lab. Once in here, he had her sit down in a chair. She looked away when he managed to use a sterilized swab to clean the area before using a syringe to take a sample of her blood. Placing a ball of cotton on the small wound, he told her to press down to stop the bleeding. He placed various drops of her blood on a few slides and altered them with chemical drops. On studying them, he seemed to sigh.

"Bad?" she frowned.

"No. You're perfectly healthy," he smiled softly. "I think it's the men that have the issue. Do you recall the limping gait they all had? Most of them, anyways?"

"Yes. It was rare for the women to have it. And…oh! I think you're right," she blinked. He checked where he took blood from her and was relieved that the bleeding stopped.

"I will check for any children that come from you, though," he said. "To see what I find."

"You would be my personal doctor?" she blushed.

"An emergency field one," he grinned. "Since…your children could be mine, too…"

Now she blushed even harder. "Not yet, though."

"No. I haven't asked you to marry me. Yet."


	11. Chapter 11

She was still blushing hard at what he said when she got out of the shower. He really did want to marry her! And the kiss her gave her! She was still swooning over it. He really was concerned about her, though. He wanted her to live with him. With all of his puzzles. She could only sigh at that. But, obviously by now, he knew that she liked puzzles.

While she was finishing up her shower, he was signing off on the parcel that contained her gown. He was able to walk out to the main gate to receive it. Right after that, a package from the jewelry shop arrived. He had almost made it to the door when the delivery man rang the buzzer. Chuckling softly, he made his way back out to receive it. He set the parcel with her gown in her guest bedroom. The jewelry package he took into his study on the second floor to open up.

What he had were several various rings of solid gold. There were fittings for gems, but the gems were missing. He already had them separately. Getting out a small silver chest, he set them next to the displayed ring pieces. Sitting back in his leather chair, he waited patiently.

She walked up to him in a modest, dark green dress. He smiled softly and gestured for her to have a seat in front of him. On looking at what he had, she paused in thought.

"My dear, can you find me a small pillow? I may have one in the parlor," he said.

"Of course," she nodded. He waited for her to bring him the small reddish-cream colored pillow. He took it from her and thought.

"Do you still have that silver key you found from my clock?" he asked quietly.

"I do. Oh! The chest?" she asked when she saw it.

"Yes. It's time to open it," he nodded. She went and grabbed the small key to bring back. Unlocking the small chest, she was momentarily dazzled by the gems within it. "Thank you, my dear. Now, can you put this ring puzzle together? After it's put together, I need you to set it with any gems that fit it. If you could, I would appreciate it."

"Very well," she nodded. She had to sit down to do this, and she took her time to piece each slender ring together. The parts that held the rings together were also designed to have gems lock into them. There was one large stone holder and six smaller ones. The larger one obviously locked on top. The rest attached to various rings. When the small ring was put together, she went through the silver chest with a set of tweezers that were included. She fit the gems within the clasps and realized that it was a beautiful gold and diamond ring that she pieced together.

"Lovely," he smiled. "May I have it?"

"Here you go," she chuckled. On taking it, he moved in front of her and gestured for her to stand. Then he set the pillow on the ground and knelt on it. Only then did her jaw drop. She knew what was happening even when he presented the ring to her.

"Marjery Delury," he said with a controlled voice. "Will you marry me?"

"I…" she trembled at how neatly all of this fell into place. "Yes!"

He slipped the ring on her finger, stood up and kissed her fully. He was still trembling with her as he held her. "You are moving in with me. Tonight. After the event."

"Okay," she managed to whisper.

"I'll pay off whatever debts you have left of the month you owe. I'll have several officers with us, too. We still have a couple hours before we need to leave. I'll call for a coach to come for us to take us there. Don't worry about anything, my dear. I'm handling everything."

"To think that…just yesterday morning…none of this was…"

"I know. Trust me. I do," he chuckled and kissed her again. "I love you."

"I love you," she said back. Oh, her heart was beating so fast! He pressed another kiss to her mouth and hugged her to him. A heavy sigh of relief escaped him now.

"You should get ready. I'll do the same," he said. When she left to her room, he grabbed his cane to lean on it. Closing his eyes, he gave a soft, quiet smile. Then he heard something.

_"Beware the coachman!"_ a ghostly voice hissed. His eyes popped open and he frowned. The coachman? On thinking about what he planned to do, his jaw dropped. Did a ghost from her old town follow them? If it did, he was grateful. Then he remembered something. The crystal that was given to him. He didn't hear the ghosts until she gave it to him. Did it not only lead him to Marjery, but allowed him to hear her ancestors, too? He took it out and studied it. It looked like a clear, ordinary crystal. But, it did seem to shine oddly in various ways. He put it back into his breast pocket and pondered. Licking his lips a touch, he went to his phone to call for a carriage to be sent over shortly. Then he stopped himself. He was told to beware it.

"I think I may have been spared from a trap," he muttered to himself. He called up the authorities for a far safer way to get to the Officer's Ball. At the same time, he would remind himself to look at the one driving the carriage. That would be the best thing to do. He would do the same as they left. Any coachman could be someone he couldn't trust. He was in a purely protective state right now. His new, official fiancée would be protected with everything he had.

As he was now getting ready for the event, she had just slipped into the cream-colored gown of ruffles and silks. It gave her a dramatic, plunging cleavage and clung to her figure. Matching shoes were also included, much to her surprise. She was able to pull out her brush and some hair pins to have parts of her hair up, but kept most of it down to compliment her figure in the dress. She never had her ears pierced or had any other jewelry. She simply had no need for it.

She tested her walk in the new shoes carefully. They were platform heels of a sort, and she wasn't used to wearing such shoes. Once she got her balance down, she examined herself in the mirror to put on a little of the makeup she did have. Then she walked out to wait at the base of the stairwell. She was very nervous about meeting him dressed so scantily. To her, a gown like this was considered risqué.

He walked out of his room and down the dark red velvet-lined stairs. On seeing her waiting for him, he stopped and stared at her unyielding beauty. She thought she wasn't pretty. To him, she was absolutely stunning. She simply didn't wear anything that fully complimented her figure. And the way her hair cascaded down her shoulders in soft coils from being pinned up was completely hypnotizing. He was dressed in his best suit of dark blue with gold highlights. His favorite golden ball-tipped cane was at his side, and his hands were adorned with the usual white satin gloves.

"Hello, Dupin," she smiled. He cleared his throat, neatened his dark blue top hat and walked the rest of the way down. He offered her his arm, and she accepted it. What she didn't see was the small pistol in his inner jacket pocket. He had warned the officials that he would be armed.

"Just stay at my side. All through the night," he muttered to her softly. "I refuse to let you go."

"I wouldn't want to leave," she shivered. He put his arm around her.

"Good," he nodded. "Just so you know, I do have a gun on me."

"What?"

"A sense of foreboding. I'm taking precautions."

"Very well," she frowned.

"And…I'm going to tell you something else," he smiled.

"What's that?"

"Dupin is actually my last name. In time, I'll tell you another name," he chuckled. At that, her jaw dropped a touch. "And to know that you will be Mrs. Dupin in due time, I am extremely happy."

"I…"

"Hush, my dear. Come. Our carriage awaits," he said. Very gently, he guided her through the gates to the waiting carriage. On studying the man driving the carriage, he noticed that it was an officer. There were also three other officers in the carriage, too, to ensure a safe passage. They took his warning very seriously. Letting her sit next to him, the carriage began to move. They all didn't seem to recognize Marjery from her new finery and looks. At the way Dupin had her at his side, it clearly showed that this girl was rather special to him.

"An honor to meet you, Detective Dupin!" one of the men said.

"Likewise. This is Marjery Delury. My assistant and new fiancée," he chuckled with a touch of pride. She actually blushed at him, but she nodded all the same.

"Truly?! Congratulations, Sir!" a second man said.

"When is the big day?" the third officer asked.

"Ah, that's still to be decided," Dupin laughed softly. He kept a casual arm around her waist through the whole ride. "Are you well, my dear?"

"I'm fine," she smiled.

"Many women are going to be quite jealous," the second officer grinned.

"Well, only this one at my side can solve my puzzle locks with ease," he grinned back. "And she's been there at my side for a numerous amount of my cases. I wouldn't have made a better choice."

"Very true," the first man agreed. They chatted about various things throughout the twenty minute ride. Marjery could only blush from the soft squeeze he gave her now and then.

"I think we're here," the third officer said when he looked out a window.

"That we are. Come, my dear," Dupin gestured for her hand. Giving it to him, she let him lead her into the Officer's Ball.


	12. Chapter 12

The entrance was beautifully lit up with string lights and small candles. On walking in, he had the announcer shout out who he was and that Marjery was his fiancée. At this news, many scowls from various women were easily heard. He wouldn't be dancing with any of them tonight. Or ever again, for that matter. He even casually ignored their stares as he led the stunning beauty at his side to their destined table. He was placed to be sitting with the Chief and his wife.

His blond-haired wife was a touch fat, but only from good living. She did have a regal look in the dark red gown she wore. The Chief sported a fine moustache and beard that was well groomed. His thinning brown hair was swept over the top of his head, and his officer's hat was set on the table. He was wearing a similar outfit from Dupin's with the royal blue and gold, but he had on a few more badges to show his station. At the sight of the detective, he waved him over with a grin. "Detective Dupin! I was afraid you wouldn't make it! I was told there may have been some doubts."

"I know," Dupin laughed softly. "I wouldn't worry about that."

"As for the rest of your odd case, when did you want it cleared up?" the man asked when he leaned in to mildly whisper. He was always a man on duty. Dupin respected that.

"Tomorrow," Dupin said in a stern tone. "All of it needs to end tomorrow."

"We shall be ready," he nodded.

"I also brought my small hand pistol. I'm letting you know. Inner coat pocket."

"Good. You are not the only one here that's armed."

"Perfect. Oh. Here," Dupin said, as he took out Marjery's diary. He had so many pockets in his coats that it was easily carried and hidden away.

"Dupin?" she frowned. He leaned close to her to whisper.

"It holds the evidence we need. Remember. The words in there are of your past. I only want him to glimpse the evidence first. Then I'll take it back."

"You didn't read all of the pages I wrote. Did you?"

"Not yet."

"Good. I want to do that with you."

"Okay. We can do that," he nodded.

"Who's writing is this? The poor girl!" the Chief frowned.

"It was an old diary we found. None had claimed it, and we needed the empty pages. You can ignore the first twelve. What you need is behind them," Dupin said wisely.

"Ah! So it is," he nodded and flipped the pages to read. "This…is…disturbing…"

"I know," Dupin agreed.

"May I keep this?"

"I'll give you the pages you need. I'll keep the main book," Dupin said. He was able to carefully remove the evidence pages to give over. The Chief excused himself to lock the precious papers away. He also had a rather daring idea. The girl was being hunted to be forced into an unwanted marriage. He knew that Dupin clearly loved her with how he was protecting her. He wanted to help somehow. With a small grin, he knew what he wanted to do. And who he needed to get. While he went to make a quick trip to the station, the music started up. Dupin smiled at his fiancée. "My dear, will you dance with me?"

"Of course," Marjery smiled. He placed her diary in a large inner coat pocket and lead her to dance part of the floor. "I thought you weren't much for dancing."

"Slow dances are fine. My legs aren't what they used to be," he chuckled.

"Well, I'm honestly not much of a dancer," she admitted.

"Then I change my mind about dancing. Let's go to the terrace," he suggested. She nodded and he lead her up to a stone balcony covered in hanging ivy. The moon was starting to get fuller, and they sat on a carved stone bench. He kept one gloved hand on top of his cane. The other was secured around her waist. He was content to be just like this. This was what she preferred, too.

"What are the plans after this?" she asked.

"We go to your apartment, pay off whatever is left of your rent and remove your belongings," he said sternly. "Then we return home to set you up with a permanent room."

"To your home?"

"Our home," he smiled to correct her. She blushed softly. "Was there a room that you liked?"

"Oh. I do like the room that I'm in now."

"Good! Consider it yours. I have a few other guest rooms. Although, I'm fairly sure that you could try sleeping in my room with me. After the wedding, of course."

"Ah…" she blinked and blushed hard. He smiled and tilted her face to his to kiss her fully. He was forced to break the kiss off when he heard someone approaching. Glancing over, he noticed the Chief with a rather amusing smile on his face.

"Something wrong?" Dupin asked.

"Not really," he admitted and sat next to them. "I need to ask you something."

"Go right ahead," Dupin nodded and let Marjery lean into him.

"You've known her for…oh…how long?" the Chief mused.

"Four years. It was the same amount of time that she left her home."

"Ah. And, my dear, how old are you? If it's all right to know?" he asked.

"Oh. I'm twenty-six years," she nodded. He glanced at Dupin. The detective was laughing softly at the man's inner judgment. Marjery trembled with her own quiet laughter.

"I didn't expect for all of this to happen," Dupin said mildly when he still got stared at.

"I knew you liked them young…" the Chief started.

"Shut up, you old dog," Dupin grinned. "She's an adult and is invaluable to me. Regardless of all this, she's still my assistant."

"Of course, she is," the Chief grinned back.

"Besides, Chief Officer Johansson," Dupin muttered. "I am curious as to why you came over."

"Ah. I wanted to introduce you to a friend of mine. He was able to make it. Judge Oliver Stone. There he is!" the Chief waved him over.

"Greetings, Detective Dupin. And his lovely guest," the tall, thin man nodded. "I was informed of this…horrible act of misdeed. From your past. I will assist in bringing justice to it."

"Oh! Thank you so much," she smiled.

"Of course," he chuckled. "But, Detective Dupin, I do have a small set of questions for you."

"Oh?" Dupin frowned.

"Detective Dupin, you do love her?"

"I do. Very much so," he smiled.

"Good, good. And, ah, Marjery Delury? You love him, too?"

"Yes. Very much so," she blushed.

"Always important to know," the judge smiled. The Chief was silently bearing witness. Another officer was just off in the distance to witness, too. Then the judge asked, "If she were ill, would you care for her? Even if she were healthy?"

"Without a doubt!" he said quickly.

"And, dear lady, you would do the same for him?"

"I would drop everything until I knew he was well," she said sternly.

"Until you both ended up on your deathbeds?" the judge prodded.

"Yes!" both Dupin and Marjery said together.

"Wonderful to hear!" the judge chuckled and brought out a document. "I doubt that anyone has any objections? No? Good! Please sign this for me. Both of you. I'll have to file it away after this ball is done. Or, I could run it up to my office with a quick carriage ride."

"Wait…" Dupin frowned and studied the document. "This is…a…wedding document…"

"And you both just told me your vows. I hereby pronounce you husband and wife," the honorable judge said with a deep nod. Dupin's jaw dropped. Marjery was just as stunned by it all.

"You'll need to get yourself a wedding band," Chief Johansson grinned ruefully.

"You put all this together!" Dupin said with shock at the man.

"I did," he grinned and nodded. "It had to be done."

"But…I…" Marjery said with her jaw dropped. Dupin was handed a pen, and, after a moment of stunned silent recollection, he signed the paper. He gave the pen over to his new wife, and she was able to just barely manage her signature. The Chief signed it next, and the man hiding just off in the distance walked forward to sign after him. They were the witnesses. The document was handed off to the judge to sign, and he left with it.

"We'll leave you two alone," the Chief said with a wink and had his officer follow him.

"Married. We're…" Dupin said with one of the rarest looks of complete shock he ever had.

"I can't…believe…" Marjery whispered. He looked at her with a thoughtful expression.

"I suppose…I shouldn't delay in this. But…I think…I should kiss the bride…" he muttered. He pulled her close and kissed her passionately.


	13. Chapter 13

The rest of the event went smoothly enough. Those that caught wind of the sudden marriage had quickly walked up to the new bride and groom to congratulate them. A song was even played for them for the joyous occasion. As much as many disgruntled women were sad that such a catch was gone, they felt better knowing that they were at least there to honor it.

"You're sure about tomorrow?" the Chief asked when he walked with them to the carriage.

"Yes. I'll call it a wedding gift to her," Dupin smiled. Marjery was still too stunned to properly speak. "Will you accompany us to her old apartment? She needs to collect her things."

"I was planning on it," the man nodded. His wife was already taken to their home, so he was free for the rest of the evening. When the carriage started to move, Dupin had Marjery so close that he could have been holding her in his lap. When they got to her place of residence, there were already several officers there. Dupin escorted Marjery to her room to help her gather up her things.

"None of the furniture?" he asked.

"No, Dupin. This place was already furnished," she said.

"Good. Less to take. Ah, you'll need some new dresses. I didn't realize that you had to patch up your own clothes! Oh! This is a tear in your clothing that you got from helping me?"

"Yes. I got quite a good bit of my clothing destroyed on quite a few of your cases," she chuckled.

"I'll have to be careful with the gown then, hmm?" he smiled. "Considering that I did help you with it. What? You thought that a gown like this would be easy to afford?"

"Dupin! What did you do?!" she gasped.

"I only paid half," he grinned. Her jaw dropped and he laughed. "Pre-wedding gift! No complaints. You can think of it like that."

"Your mind is like one giant puzzle box, I swear it!" she scowled. He started laughing a bit more. "And I hardly doubt I'll ever be able to solve it."

"Not even I have a guidebook to tell you how to do that," he agreed. Then he pulled her close to bend down and whisper enticingly in her ear, "Now hurry up so we can get home. I have a feeling that you'll be moving into my bedroom instead of your own room."

"Of course…" she blushed. At the kiss he gave her next, he almost lost control. His detective nature kicked in and forced him back. Gasping a touch with the denial he gave himself, he knew there would be plenty of time to continue soon.

"I'll take that," he said and took her bag. When he got out to the hallway, he paused. His instinctive sense of danger kicked in quickly. The Chief wasn't there. "Something's wrong."

"Dupin…" she whispered.

"Marjery," he said in his familiar way. "We have a new case."

"Yes, Detective Dupin," she nodded.

"Chief Johansson is missing," he said. "Where was he last located?"

"Just outside the building," she said.

"Okay. I'm leaving this here," he said and took off her bag to set aside. "It will be safe enough. Stay behind me, please. As my wife and assistant, you need to be kept safe and out of harm's way."

"Of course," she nodded again.

"I didn't tell you this, but I was warned to beware of a coachman. I failed to recognize the driver that took us here. I was too…preoccupied with current events," he sighed. At her look of worry, he turned and pressed a kiss to her cheek. "Don't worry, my dear. We'll figure this out."

"I know," she smiled. He took out his small hand pistol and had her stand directly behind him. When they got out to the carriage, he noticed that the Chief was knocked out. His suspicions were correct. The coachman was gone. The other officers were gone.

"I don't trust this situation," he muttered.

"You shouldn't," a familiar smirk was heard. He turned quickly to find his new wife being held against a masked man. A knife was at her throat. He recognized the voice all too well. "She'll be coming back with me now."

"Stanley, unhand my wife," Dupin said calmly. Stanley scowled that he was remembered and pulled the mask down. There was no need for it now. At what Dupin called Marjery, he smirked again.

"Wife? Hah!" he grinned. "You just said you only got engaged! Such a thing takes a while to put together! There's no need to lie."

"It's true. We were just married," Marjery said calmly. At Stanley's gaping look of disbelief, she chuckled. "We simply couldn't wait. You didn't notice the new ring on my finger?"

"You have no more claim to her. She's my wife. Let her go. I might forgive you," Dupin said.

"No. I think I'll kill you now," Stanley growled. "If she's widowed, then she's free."

"You forget who has the gun. And the armed guards," Dupin said in a stern tone. Several of the officers had returned with their guns raised up. Stanley's ruse to distract them had worn off. On seeing their Chief on the ground and Dupin's gun out, they knew what was happening. "Release her. Now."

"If I can't have her, then neither can you!" he spat. Then Marjery turned to bite his shoulder hard. He screamed at the attack and flung her away in an instinctive notion. Once she was out of danger, Dupin fired his weapon to cripple the man's hips a bit more. He knew the weakness of the town inhabitants. The lameness was from brittle bone structure. He likely just shattered the man's hip. When Stanley fell, the knife clattered away from him. An officer was quick to kick it out of reach.

"You're disgusting!" Dupin growled. "She's your cousin! Of the same family tree!"

"It doesn't…matter…with my family!" Stanley hissed as he was apprehended.

"You're breeding yourselves out to death!" he argued.

"It's our decision! Our oath!" the young man argued back.

"Stop!" Marjery whimpered. Dupin looked over at her and forgot about the intruding youth. He moved straight to her side and hugged her tight. She had landed on the ground from where she got tossed aside, and he lifted her to cradle her.

"Are you hurt?!" he asked quickly.

"No. Just shaken…" she trembled. A sigh of relief slipped past his lips at that.

"Let's go home, my love," he whispered. "Let's get your things and go home."

"Please…" she whispered back. "But…the Chief…"

"He'll be fine. He just got bumped on the back of the head. His men will care for him. I'm sure I'll get a call on his condition. Let's get your bag and we'll go," Dupin said. She could only agree with him. One of the officers was quick to take control of the carriage to start taking them back to Dupin's estate. While on the trip back, her dress was inspected. "He tore a bit of the hem…"

"I…figured that…" she winced. "At least it's clothing and not me."

"We can get it fixed. And you're right. It's just clothing. I should front him the repair bill," he smirked. At her look of disgust, he smiled. "No, you're right. I wouldn't want any part of him near us."

"I'm…surprised that he was able to leave the village," she frowned.

"He was planning on returning. I think that's the loophole. To promise to return with a prize."

"And he thought that prize was me."

"I wanted to laugh at his look on hearing that we married," he grinned.

"I'm still surprised about that. It's always an adventure with you. Isn't it?" she mused.

"Would you have it any other way?" he muttered softly. At his gaze, she smiled gently.

"No. I wouldn't," she murmured back. He kissed her tenderly at first. Then it got more wanting. Several times he had to remind himself that he was in a carriage on his way back to his home.

"Maggie…" he groaned at the feel of her pressing against him. "I think…the carriage stopped…"

"It did," she said in a husky tone that he never heard before.

"I'll get a wedding band soon," he said and forced himself away from her. She nodded and followed him out of the carriage. He grabbed her bag, thanked the officer for his aid and led her into the house. The moment they walked in, the door was shut and he dropped the bag to grab her and ravish her mouth with his again. She was able to hold onto his cane when he gathered her up to take her up the stairs. He couldn't wait any longer. He knew she was the same. The night was finally able to end for them the moment his bedroom door shut tight.


	14. Chapter 14

It wasn't until later in the morning that he was finally able to rouse himself. She was nestled against his chest and mildly awake. They looked at each other and giggled.

"How do you feel, Mrs. Dupin?" he smiled.

"Still tired, Mr. Dupin," she chuckled.

"Feel free to call me Auguste," he said with a sigh. "I know that you may not in public company. It's fine. When we are alone, I have no qualms with it."

"Of course, Auguste," she whispered. He kissed her gently and moved to reach for his coat. Pulling out her diary, he adjusted the pillows to sit up in the large bed with her.

"Shall we read this together?" he asked.

"Yes," she nodded. Holding her close, he held the book and let her turn the pages for him. As he read through the diary with her, he realized that she really did repress all knowledge of her hometown when she left it. It was general knowledge for every child there to know what was expected of them. She talked about Stanley a lot, but not in the lovingly likeable way. She only saw him as a dear friend. She did write that he did admit his feelings for her, and that she told him that she didn't feel the same way. He could sense the heart-break that Stanley must have felt for that. It also explained the jealousy.

As he read, he realized why she felt the need to end her life. She didn't want to marry into her family line. She didn't want to jeopardize the health of her children. He easily sympathized with her. When he read the last page, he found out that she made the decision to leave home after hearing of the betrothal. That her uncle and father came to the same decision over a bottle of wine. It completely disgusted him to no end, and he was very glad that she was his wife now.

"Unbelievable…" he muttered.

"I know," she swallowed. He set the diary aside and pulled her closer to him.

"I'll need to run into town. I want you with me," he said. "We need to get me a wedding band. We need to fix your dress and get it cleaned. I also want to get you a new wardrobe. After that, well…hmm. Okay. Wardrobe will be done after we bring your hometown to justice. The wedding band and the dress repair come first."

"I am nervous," she admitted.

"My dear," he said with a soft smile. "As my wife, you have nothing to fear or be nervous of."

"Well, I do know that you might be getting stronger puzzle locks!" she mused. He laughed at that and could only nod. It could be possible.

"I think I'll leave my bedroom door open, though. Nothing complicated," he grinned.

"At least it's not detective proof," she giggled. At the wolfish look he gave her now, she squealed when he tackled her. He loved her far too much to admit.

It was twenty minutes later when they were able to shower and dress. He made an appointment at the jewelers and informed the seamstress of the gown drop-off for mending. The seamstress insisted they come in quickly. A quick hemming patch-job was an easy fix. They had both arrived within the hour.

True to her word, they were leaving with the finished dress within ten minutes. The jeweler was next. Dupin paid him for the puzzle ring service and had Marjery help him pick out a proper wedding band. Once it was fitted and on his ring finger, the price was paid and they were off again.

"It's time to visit your hometown," he said in the carriage ride to the station. "We'll check on the Chief to ensure his health. I am also going to drop a line to Count DeMorgan. He offered us his aid. I'm going to accept it. We have half a day's ride ahead of us."

"I know," she sighed.

"I think I'll suggest that we ride alone," he mused. At her hard blush, he chuckled and kissed her. "It would make the ride that much quicker."

"It would," she smiled. He pulled her close and held her.

"We're almost done with this," he muttered. "Just a little longer."

"I want it to be over," she said and pressed herself into him.

"It will be over. Today," he promised her. Another kiss was planted on her mouth before he escorted her into the station. After thirty minutes, various officers were able to accommodate him. The Chief had recovered and was quick to help with this, too. The Count was called on and reinforcements were being sent to rendezvous with their small army near the offending town.

"May I ride with you?" the Chief asked.

"Well…" Dupin started.

"It's urgent. I was studying the pages you gave me. I found something you need to know of," the man urged. "I need to show you as we head there."

"I'll still be with you," Marjery smiled. Dupin sighed, but he nodded all the same.

"Very well," Dupin said. The Chief made plans to leave the carriage when he had to. There were others that would have room for him to travel. As they started on the main road south, the evidence pages were produced. He pointed to a passage near the end. As Dupin read it, his eyes got wide.

"Dupin?" Marjery frowned.

"My dear," he said softly. "You may have to wait in the carriage when we get there."

"Why?" she asked.

"Your town…may have had Occult dealings," he frowned. Her jaw dropped. "It states that there was, indeed, an oath done. To keep the town alive and running. There was a definite reason they wanted you back. Look. 'If any inhabitants leave this plot of land, may it go back to the Hells it derived from!' It looks like it includes any and all that lived on it. From what I can see, the town needed land to start on. They didn't have any of their own. So, they called on demonic forces to assist them."

"No…" she paled.

"And, since you left the town to be with me and live elsewhere…" he frowned hard. "A debt may soon need to be collected. It was fine for you to leave, but only if you moved back to marry. That didn't happen, and we have no plans to ever move back. I think…I just broke the cycle of the town."

"So…everyone will die? But…Stanley isn't there, either!" she said.

"About that…" the Chief winced. "He was found dead in his cell this morning."

"I beg pardon?" Dupin asked now. Marjery's jaw fell wide open.

"It was just a dried skeleton in there! But…it was wearing his clothes," the man said slowly.

"I think I get it," Dupin said. He thought carefully over it all. "The town wasn't on any maps because it wasn't supposed to exist."

"But…!" she fretted. He looked at her and squeezed her to calm her down a touch.

"My dear, I saved you. I pulled you out of an endless loop of life. I think your ancestors were with each other to be constantly reborn. Up until today. I believe it was part of the debt to keep the town alive. I also believe that your parents knew that you were planning on leaving. So, in an act of desperation to keep this knowledge safe, and to save the town, they tried to marry you off to someone in the town to force you to stay.

"However, on saving you, we may have doomed Luxxon. The entire town. The moment we married and you began to live with me…I think it destroyed everything the town was able to survive with. And by this, I mean that it was likely when you brought the rest of your things into my home."

"I wouldn't know…what to think…if it was true…" she shivered. He kissed her gently and smiled. When the tears started again, he was able to hug her tight. He didn't bother to bring out his handkerchief this time. He was consoling her the way she truly needed it.

"Hush, my dear. We'll know when we get there. Just like before," he whispered softly. He kissed her forehead and rocked her. "At least your sister will get her just desserts."

"Dupin!" she said with a touch of disbelief. He cracked a grin and squeezed her. The Chief was casually minding his own business by looking out the window. As much as he would have left them alone now, it couldn't be done. They were making swift time, and he didn't want to pause for any reason.


	15. Chapter 15

When the carriage stopped, Dupin was the first one out to survey the area. What he saw made him pause. The town was in shambles. The Count's men were also there, and they were eager to see what they could make of this town, too. When the men went through the area, they found only skeletons. Everything looked ancient and run down. When Marjery was able to look at her childhood home, the small medieval mansion was just a crumbling ruin. All of her old haunts were over-run with wild brush. The graveyard was even in complete disarray, but the flowers she placed there the night before were still there, surprisingly enough.

All of the new buildings they saw were gone. All of the buildings he witnessed with her just the other night looked as though they hadn't been lived in for years. It was truly a ghost town that appeared to be abandoned for decades. If there were any survivors, they were already taken away when the debt was collected. Even the animals weren't spared. When they saw the library, the books were crumbled particles of dust with leather bindings. The only odd thing was that the original book they saw in the hidden room was missing. The contract was confiscated by whatever made the debt agreement. The only proof they had was the copy they made from her diary pages.

When the bodies of her parents were located in her childhood home of rubble, they were found at a table eating their breakfast. The Mayor, his son and Marjery's sister were at a broken table with, what appeared to be, old breakfast plates that were set up. It was the same with every other home that was inspected. It was as though the town had one final meal before knowing the end was upon them. But, not even the food looked fresh. The men were all baffled by it all.

"I'm sorry," Dupin said softly.

"It's all right," she said quietly. "You saved me from a fate worse than death."

"I can only guess that this happened around midnight," he frowned. "That's when most Occult dealings start and end. It's either that or early morning from the state each family appears to be in. I'm not sure what else I can tell you."

"I know," she shivered. He held her close in his arms to let her press into him. When he looked off in the distance, he blinked with uncertainty. He felt something lightly vibrate in his breast pocket, and he looked up with alarm. The crystal was pulling something to him. Before long, a mist had formed before him and separated out into ten spirits. Then he realized that they were the town founders. They all regarded him with a form of respect.

_"Thank you for freeing us from our mistake,"_ a first female said.

_"As much as it pains us, our descendants here have paid our price,"_ the second female mourned.

_"In return, for freeing us, we shall watch over our new descendants that you create with our last surviving descendant,"_ a male said with a small nod.

_"We will help you when we can on any future missions,"_ another male said.

_"Now leave this town! It will vanish shortly! All who remain on these grounds are in danger!"_ the third female warned. When they vanished, Dupin grabbed his wife by the hand.

"We have to go! Now! Fall back to the perimeter! Quickly!" Dupin shouted for all to hear him. At his wife's questioning gaze, he said, "I just saw the spirits of your ancestors. They warned me that this village is going to disappear! We have to leave!"

"What?!" she gaped. The Chief heard the shouted warning and repeated the order. Even the men that the Count sent were quickly accounted for to retreat. The moment they stepped out of the village grounds, an earthquake split the ground to swallow the village whole. Then the land reformed to show nothing left. Marjery was terrified at what she just witnessed. Dupin swallowed, nodded to the landscape and had her turn to leave with him.

"I'm riding with her alone. We'll talk at the station," he said sternly. The Chief suppressed a smile, and he nodded with complete understanding.

"Dupin…" she whispered when she settled next to him. "What just…"

"The debt was collected," he said softly. "There is nothing more to come back here to. I love you, Marjery Dupin. I'm so glad that you left this place to join me at my side."

"I love you, too, Auguste Dupin," she whispered in a trembling voice. "You are the most amazing man I have ever met. I do love you so. You and all of your puzzles, too."

That got him to laugh and kiss her soundly to start the ride back home.


	16. Epilogue

A year later, she birthed him a strong, healthy son. He couldn't have been happier. Her original guest bedroom was quick to become a nursery during the development. It was right next to their bedroom, too. He had gotten with Count DeMorgan and was able to locate the missing heirloom piece. It was a wonder that they didn't clean out from under various couch cushions more often. He was given some time alone with his wife and developing son after that. But, soon after his son's birth, just a week later, he was called back into the fold for a meeting. The moment it was done, he had rushed home.

He walked into the nursery where she was found nursing their newborn in a rocking chair. He smiled at the gentle scene and sighed. She looked up and smiled at him.

"How was the meeting?" she asked.

"Not too bad," he smiled. Walking over now, he pressed a kiss to her mouth and another was gently pressed to his son's forehead. "How's our little Samuel?"

"He was a touch fussy earlier. As you can see, it was from hunger," she chuckled.

"As I can tell," he nodded. He pulled up a chair to sit next to her. "I need to tell you this."

"Oh?" she asked.

"You remember Stanley's body? From that day?" he asked carefully.

"I remember how it was found from what I was told," she frowned.

"Well, they did bury him a week later. After evidence processing, of course. They never told me this until today, since, well, they were baffled," he sighed. "They noticed his grave was sunken in the next day. On unearthing it, they discovered that the coffin was gone."

"And they waited until now to tell you?" she asked with dismay.

"They did. They wanted to wait until my mind was settled out from being with you," he shrugged. That had her shaking her head. "The gravestone was missing, too. The grave keeper saw nothing out of the ordinary, either. He just noticed that the dirt suddenly looked sunken in. So, he waited until morning to contact authorities. They had to keep quiet."

"When did the gravestone go missing?"

"Now…I didn't ask that," he pondered. "My first concern was to see you."

"Of course, Auguste," she smiled.

"I'll ask that question the next time I talk to them. Right now, I'm just happy that you're here and safely away from all of that," he muttered.

"I know," she chuckled. When Samuel got fussy, she crooned. "Okay! You're done. I get it. Hush, sweetheart. Hush now!"

He laughed softly and took up his son to let her fix her nursing gown back up. His son had inherited his blue eyes and his mother's dark brown hair. He even got Dupin's nose and mouth, too. At the sight of his father, Samuel gave a smile that babies always gave, and Dupin smiled back. He would always be the proud father. She moved to stand next to him, and he kissed her passionately. He knew she needed to walk a bit, and he escorted her to the small walk around the hallway. She couldn't stand for too long, since she was still healing after the birth.

They had hung up her black and white family portrait on one side of the stairway gallery. Another portrait of him and his new family was on the other side. More would definitely be added in. When she showed exhaustion from standing, he was quick to escort her to their bedroom to let her nestle against him. He placed their son between them to slowly show his own exhaustion from the recent feeding. They were able to kiss gently without disturbing him.

"I never thought I'd be in this predicament," he smiled.

"Me, neither," she beamed. "So, what are the plans now?"

"Well…" he thought as he got comfortable. "Fatherhood does seem to be a grand adventure. Think you're up to making me two more apprentices?"

"Well, that depends, Detective Dupin," she grinned with a mischievous wink. "Do you think you're up for it? Children can be little puzzles, too, you know. I can't solve those by myself."

"And that's why I'm here. To solve those little puzzles with you. And to always make new ones," he muttered and kissed her again.

~Fin~


End file.
